The Effects of the Devejuice Potion
by Gryffingirl
Summary: Similar to Polyjuice, Devejuice Potion is one that turns one person to another, but can only be changed back with an antidote. As a result of a class experiment involving the potion, Harry becomes Draco and vice versa...
1. Chapter 1

The Effects of the Devejuice Potion 

Disclaimer: You know what belongs to J.K. Rowling (all hail!). The rest is mine. 

A/N: Harry becomes Draco and Draco becomes Harry as a result of Devejuice Potion. I was bored and started typing this, and wasn't even considering posting it. FYI- the names in ( ) are the real person. Hope you don't get confused. R/R and enjoy!

**Chapter 1**

Harry was so bored. Snape's unctuous voice droned on about the wonders of Devejuice potion. It was exactly like Polyjuice potion, except the effects could only wear off with an antidote. Snape had been teaching about it for almost a month now, because everybody was making his or her very own and the potion took at least that long to complete. The 6th years' cauldrons stay heated in the back of the room for the past few weeks.

" So," Snape snapped quite loudly, putting everybody out of their daze and to attention, " If everything was done correctly," his eyes unmistakably flashed towards Neville, "You will turn into your partner without a problem. At the end of the lesson, you will receive your antidotes. I will give you your partners now." He took out a piece of parchment and his lips curled maliciously.

" Brown with Bulstrode," he said. Lavender looked over at Millicent, and looked nauseous. Lavender had grown very fond of her looks over the years, while Millicent had proceeded to grow as many chins as humanly possible. 

" Longbottom with Goyle." Neville squeaked in fear. Harry, remembering what it was like to be Goyle from Polyjuice potion in his second year, felt a little sorry for Neville.

" Weasley with Crabbe, Finnigan with Nott, Granger with Parkinson."

Snape continued to call names, but Harry didn't hear his. Finally, after the whole room was buzzing with anxiety, Snape looked up from his list and muttered. "Potter with Malfoy."

Harry had two reactions. One was to scream, " No!" (with Malfoy) and stand up. The other was a wave of sudden nausea at the prospect of looking like Malfoy for a whole half- hour. 

Snape looked over at Malfoy. " I apologize Mr. Malfoy," he said and sharply glanced at Harry. " You'll do as you're told, Potter, or else…"

_Or else what!_ Harry wanted to exclaim. At this point, he wanted nothing more than to take something heavy, anything, and bring it down upon Snape's head. He was so sick of his empty threats. 

The whole class began to assemble themselves with their assigned partner. Harry hesitantly took his cauldron from the back of the room and brought it over the where Malfoy sat. His pointed face was sneering. 

" You're lucky, Potter," he said. " Nobody else gets such a good trade. That four-eyed face to this one," he said, smirking and pointing arrogantly at his own face.

" I'm not too fond of being you either, Malfoy," Harry said hotly. He didn't care what Malfoy said; he just wanted to get this over with. 

Malfoy rolled his eyes. " I'm gonna have that stupid scar on my forehead too. This sucks."

Harry ignored him and grabbed the ladle. He scooped his own potion into his cup and Malfoy did the same with his. Soon, everybody in the class was nervously holding their cup in their hands. 

" Take your partner's hair, everybody," Snape said lazily, scanning his eyes across the apprehensive students. " Drop it in the cup."

Harry plucked out a jet-black hair from his bangs, and Malfoy did the same from his head of silvery hair. Malfoy looked quite smug about it, while Harry didn't really care. His hair was untidy anyways.

When Harry dropped Malfoy's hair in his cup, the potion turned a nasty green. He looked over at Malfoy's potion, which was fizzing to a deep red color. Everybody in the class was holding a different colored potion. 

" Drink," Snape said. Harry looked down at his fizzing potion and nervously brought it to his lips. The hot liquid burned in his mouth. He quickly swallowed and the effect of it going down his throat was one he couldn't quite explain. It burned but felt very icy. 

Harry felt the change over his body. He felt his nose grow longer and his lips turn into a sneer. Slowly, everything became blurry. Harry felt very dizzy and blinked several times, but the blurry vision didn't go away.

" Take off the glasses, genius," he heard a very odd yet slightly familiar voice say. Harry slowly removed the glasses that rested on his pointed nose and handed them to the person in front of him.

Harry couldn't stop staring. In front of him stood, well, him. He surveyed the untidy black hair, the pale skin, the lanky figure, and the bright green eyes. His eyes flicked up the lightening bolt scar, which was half hidden behind his bangs. 

" I look good," the person said. The other Harry was looking at him. 

Draco's attitude had obviously not changed, although his looks had. 

" I can't believe I look like such a dumbass," he said. Harry left him and approached the person who had turned into Crabbe.

" Hey Ron," he said. His voice sounded much quieter and had a certain tone of bitterness in it. 

Crabbe (Ron) turned his massive body to Harry. " Aaah!" he said, wide-eyed.  " Harry!"

The two friends looked at each other and immediately began throwing pretend insults at each other. 

Pansy Parkinson approached the two of them.

 " Hermione?" Ron said. He then smirked a little and bent down to kiss her. Hermione didn't retreat, and Harry found it funny to see the massive figure of Crabbe kiss Pansy. 

" Stop it!" Hermione (Pansy) shrieked when she saw them. Ron (Crabbe), however, seemed perfectly fine with it. 

 " Silence," Snape said, standing in front of the class with a very pleased look in his eyes. " Sit down and learn the rest of the lesson. Everybody is to write an essay about the physical effects of the potion for homework and compare it to Polyjuice potion. And you, Longbottom," his mean eyes darted to a figure who was cowering in the corner. This person was obviously Neville, but only from certain angles. The left side of his face was fatter than his right, and Neville's normally brown hair started that way from the roots but grew darker near the tips. His nostrils were huge but his eyes were still small and scared looking. His left arm was massive and hung from his tiny body.

" Longbottom, you have yet again failed miserably to make a successful potion in this class. You have two essays tonight. One will be a thesis on exactly what you could have done wrong to turn into _that_." The Gryffindors (Slytherins) in the class snickered. Harry saw the fake Harry whisper something to Ron (Crabbe). 

" The other essay is going to be ten paragraphs, and each paragraph will be about why you are the miserable failure you are and why exactly you can't get _anything_ right in this class."

With this said, the Gryffindors (Slytherins) cracked up. Poor Neville cowered in the corner, looking as though on the verge of tears.

Suddenly, Pansy (Hermione) stood up. " Professor, Potions is a very difficult subject," she said. " And you don't make it any easier for Neville by insulting him every day."

The laughter died down as everybody in the class turned to Pansy (Hermione). Her pug- like face was sweating with nerves, but she looked determined.

Snape looked livid. His eyes flashed and his nostrils flared behind the greasy curtain of black hair. " Granger, is that you?" he said quietly. " Two detentions and twenty points from Gryffindor. Let me go get some parchment to write that down."

He turned on his heels, and perhaps he was so angry he wasn't using his eyes. Snape slammed into the open door of the cabinet right next to his desk and crumpled to the floor. The bottle of antidote that sat on the shelf shook from the impact and fell, shattering everywhere and spraying its contents across the cold dungeon floor.

* * * * *

While Madam Pomfrey carried Snape up the hospital wing on a floating stretcher, Dumbledore calmed everybody down. 

"I have found some extra antidote in Professor Snape's office and it will be distributed. I will call each pair to my desk and when you are done, you are free to leave," he said calmly, looking at the sea of panicked faces around the room. Harry was relieved to hear this, for he didn't want to hang around in his Draco outfit much longer.

Lavender and Millicent were called up first, and Lavender looked incredibly pleased, for after she took the antidote, her perfectly manicured hand shot to her chin. 

Dumbledore went down the list, and each Slytherin was turned back into a Gryffindor, and each Gryffindor a Slytherin. Finally, Dumbledore called up the last two remaining students: Harry Potter and Draco Malfoy.

Dumbledore pulled the dropper from the bottle but all he found was air. He glanced inside and came to a horrible realization that the last of the antidote had been used up. Harry saw this written on the headmaster's face. Malfoy must have too, for both boys opened their mouths in horror. 

" I'm sorry Mr. Malfoy," he said looking at the other Harry. He then glanced at the blonde-haired boy. " Mr. Potter."

" Sorry doesn't cut it!" Malfoy yelled. His green eyes lit up and his dark eyebrows came together. " I don't want to be stuck like Potter for another second! Change me back now!"

Dumbledore had a brief look of amusement in his blue eyes. " There's nothing that can be done," he said. " The potion takes two weeks to complete."

" What are we going to do?" Harry asked. He started feeling very panicked. If Dumbledore couldn't do anything about it, there was almost no other option.

" Well, you can spend the next two weeks in the hospital wing," Dumbledore suggested. He rubbed his chin and looked at the ceiling pensively. Harry and Malfoy looked at each other. Harry was not used to seeing his own face look back at him, at this moment with a bewildered look. 

Dumbledore finally spoke. "I suggest this. Nobody knows that you are still Mr. Malfoy," he said to Harry. " Nobody know you are still Mr. Potter," he said to Malfoy. " Perhaps you could pretend to be each other for the next two weeks."

Both boys were so taken aback that their physical reactions were quite funny. Harry stumbled backwards into a chair and Malfoy's green eyes opened so wide they looked like they would pop out of his head. 

" How can you suggest that?" Malfoy shouted. In the physical form of Harry, it looked so wrong to see him yelling at Dumbledore. " Why can't we just live normally in these bodies?"

What Malfoy was saying did make more sense. These were just physical appearances and Harry was still Harry and Malfoy was still Malfoy. 

" Imagine the looks," Dumbledore said, " on the faces of your fellow Slytherins if Harry Potter walked into their common room and sat down with them. I cannot explain to everybody in the school that you are really not Harry and Harry is not really you. It would be much easier to just pretend. Besides," Dumbledore said with a smile, " Wouldn't it be interesting to live in another person's shoes for two weeks. The two of you have made yourselves adversaries and you know nothing about one another. This is your opportunity to get to know each other."

" Er--- Professor Dumbledore. You're right in saying that I don't know Mal--- Draco. How am I going to be able to convince everybody that I'm him?"

" How strange people can be, Mr. Potter, for they _always_ assume you are you if you _look_ the part." He frowned, probably recalling Mad- Eye Moody in Harry's 4th year. " Besides, the two of you know each other well enough, having seen each other every school day for the past 6 years."

Both boys were dumbstruck. Although they never agreed on anything, they were at that moment thinking the same thing: _Dumbledore is mad._

* * * * *

~^~ That's it for the first chapter. Please review!! I love reviews!! ~^~

- Gryffingirl


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: This was part of the first chapter originally… thank you peachylaura and mandy brocklehurst for my first reviews!!!

Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling is a goddess among us mortals… I would never use her ideas for money…so I do it for free!

Chapter 2 

After careful consideration, both boys swapped robes and proceeded to the Great Hall for dinner. Harry looked down, and saw the unattractive green patch on his chest that read Slytherin. Although he always believed that even though Dumbledore was a little, er, eccentric, Harry trusted him more than anyone. Maybe this _was_ the right thing to do.

When they reached to Great Hall, Harry hesitantly walked to the Slytherin table, and Draco to the Gryffindor table. Both boys glanced at each other apprehensively. 

" You better not screw this up," Draco muttered to Harry, but Harry had a feeling he was talking to himself as well.

Harry reached to table and sat down. Crabbe and Goyle were stuffing their faces with food. Harry decided to seize this opportunity to do something Malfoy-ish. He glanced noticeably at his two cronies and muttered loudly, " Pigs." Crabbe and Goyle looked very dumb and very pleased.

* * * * *

Draco had actually decided to skip dinner. He saw Ron and Hermione holding hands and talking furtively, and decided the temptation to insult them would be too great. He went back out into the entrance hall and slowly began to head towards the dungeons.

_Wait_, he thought. _Damn._

For years, Draco took the path through dungeons to his common room. He was, however, a Gryffindor now. Disturbed at this thought, he shuddered. He almost went into the Hall to ask Harry where the Gryffindor common room was, but decided not to risk it. Surely, there had to be a Gryffindor wandering the around somewhere. 

At that moment, a redheaded girl about a head shorter than Harry came out of the Great Hall. She carried a large stack of books in her arms. It was Ginny Weasley.

" Hey Weasley," Draco said casually. He approached Ginny, who stood frozen in her spot, her scarlet face glowing redder and redder as who she thought was Harry Potter drew nearer. With quick thinking, Draco said, " Do you need some help carrying those?"

" Er--- sure," Ginny chocked. She spilled some of the books into Draco's arm and slowly began walking up the marble staircase, an expression of disbelief etched on her face. 

Wordlessly, the two of them proceeded through a long corridor, behind a tapestry, another set of stairs (which evidently had a trick step) and through another corridor. At the end of the corridor was an enormous picture of, in Draco's opinion, an unattractive fat woman in a pink dress. 

" Scale- Rot," Ginny said to her when they approached her, and the portrait swung open.

_Scale- Rot_? Draco thought. _How stupid._

Passwords used by Slytherins were words like 'Power', 'Basilisk', and 'Pure-blood'. 

_Well, Scale- Rot fits the average description of a Gryffindor_, Draco thought with a laugh.

" What's so funny?" Ginny asked timidly as if afraid to break the silence. Draco spotted her red ears camouflaged with her hair. Seeing him looking at them, Ginny hastily pressed her curls over them. 

" Er--- I was just thinking about something funny. That's all." 

He followed Ginny through what seemed like a hole behind the portrait, and found himself for the first time in the Gryffindor common room.

His first reaction was, _this isn't so bad._

Draco slapped himself in his mind. Of course the room was bad. It was horrible. It was a Gryffindor room. He, however, couldn't help admiring the comfort of it, with its roaring fire and squashy armchairs. The room was round and covered in portraits. The students who weren't having dinner were chatting noisily; laughter erupted here and there. Draco spotted two staircases on each side of the room. He assumed they led to the dormitories. 

Draco put his books down on a rusty table and stood silently next to Ginny. " Er --- thanks for bringing my books up, Harry." She tilted her head back and looked into Harry's green eyes, which for whatever reason looked surprisingly cold. 

" Yeah," Draco replied callously and feigned a yawn. " I'm tired. I'm going to bed."

" Good night," she muttered. 

" 'Night," he said and turned. He was very unsure of what he was doing as he slowly climbed one of the staircases. It must have been right, because Ginny didn't say anything. He could feel her eyes on his back as he ascended the winding staircase and felt quite disgusted. As he proceeded upward, his legs grew tired. What was with this place? The Slytherin dormitories were cool underground chambers. This was a tower. He looked out one the windows and saw the forbidden forest and silhouettes of the mountains in the distance contrasting the sunset. The Slytherin dormitories had no windows, Draco thought jealously. He continued up the stairs and passed doors that were conveniently labeled " 1st years" and " 3rd years." 

At the very top of the staircase, Draco reached the door that read " 6th years." He pushed the door open and was greeted by five unfamiliar four-poster beds with deep red velvet hangings. A trunk lay at the foot of each bed. He didn't know which was Harry's so he decided to look in their trunks.

The first one he opened contained blue flannel pajamas adorned with Teddy Bears. Draco scoffed. This was obviously Neville's. He skipped the bed with the unmoving picture. This had to belong to a Muggle- born, and he knew Dean Thomas possessed the filthy blood. 

Draco opened another trunk and saw a very shiny firebolt. Yes, this was Harry's trunk. Draco was about the close the trunk, when curiosity got the best of him. He spotted something slivery and very odd. He reached for it, and the moment he touched it, he knew what it was. 

" _An invisibility cloak_," he muttered breathlessly. Ever since he was a child, Draco had _dreamed_ of having one. The cloaks, however, were extremely rare and incredibly expensive. No matter how much he bullied his father, Draco never got one. 

Now there it was in his hand. 

Hesitantly, he took the cloak and let the silky material slip through his fingers. _It feels like water_, he thought. He slowly wrapped the cloak around his shoulders and then over his head. 

Suddenly, Draco felt very free. He could go anywhere and everywhere. 

Voices suddenly drifted from the staircase, and they sounded familiar. It was Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger.

" Come on, we've got to tell him. He'll fall down laughing!" he heard Ron say. 

_Damn Potter's friends,_ Draco thought. He slipped off the cloak (rather hesitantly), and dropped it into Harry's trunk. He then crawled into the surprisingly comfortable bed and pulled the velvet curtain around it. 

The door opened and he heard Ron say, " He's asleep. He probably was just tired. He did have to be _Malfoy_ for a half- hour today."

Hermione chuckled. " Urgh. Poor Harry."

Draco gritted his teeth, wanting very badly to pull the curtains aside a defend himself, but he decided that would be a bad idea. He cringed as he heard Ron and Hermione kiss for what seemed like forever before Hermione finally left and the lights went out. 

Draco lay in the bed, still in Harry's school clothes. He didn't know if he could handle this for two weeks. He couldn't stand the Weasleys, and he couldn't stand the Mudbloods who would never be found in the Slytherin house. Draco's mind, however, kept going back to Harry's invisibility cloak that rested in his trunk. He just couldn't wait to get his hands on it again and feel the material around him. Draco drifted into a dreamless sleep, his mind on the things he could do and the places he could go wearing that cloak.

* * * * *

Harry was not adjusting well as Draco Malfoy. He followed Crabbe and Goyle down to the dungeons, but neither of them knew the password, for they had always relied on Draco to know it. Feeling incredibly foolish, he had to stand outside with his cronies until someone came along and finally opened the door.

When Harry stepped into the cold Slytherin common room, he remembered his second year when he came here as Goyle. The place still looked as he remembered it, with the high back chairs surrounding the ornate fireplace and the low ceiling made of stone. Harry suddenly missed the Gryffindor common room, which held a certain warmth that Slytherin's did not have. Harry decided not to stick around and go to bed, but he then realized he had no idea how to get there.

" Goyle, Crabbe. Could you--- er---- show me where I usually sleep?" he asked stupidly. 

Goyle and Crabbe almost fell when they heard this. What Harry didn't know was that this was because of the unexpected politeness in their leader's tone. It didn't seem to suit Malfoy very well. 

" Down there," Goyle said, pointing to a stone doorway. 

Harry almost instinctively said thanks, but then thought better of it. He went through the door way and down spiraling steps. The walls were gray stone and adorned with torches spaced apart two feet from each other that lit Harry's path as he walked deeper and deeper underground.

Soon, Harry came to a long corridor with many doors. By each door, there was a small sign. Harry approached the closest door. The sign read ' Avery, Crabbe, Goyle, Malfoy, Nott." 

Harry went inside and was met by more unfamiliar surroundings. There were five dark wood beds, each with four posters but no hangings. The posts were carved with serpents and the bedspread was velvety and dark green. There was a big stone fireplace at the end of the room. There was no fireplace in the Gryffindor dormitory, Harry thought. This was probably, however, because the Slytherins didn't have windows. 

Above the fireplace, Harry spotted moving pictures. Most were of Malfoy and the other Slytherins. He cast his eyes over the collection, and suddenly spotted a picture of himself, Harry Potter. 

It seemed to be from a chocolate frog, for his name and a description were written on it. Harry was in his Quidditch robes (seeing this made Harry miss being a Gryffindor very badly) and was holding his Firebolt (which he also wished he could have with him). His messy hair blew in the invisible wind and his green eyes glittered with excitement, as they always did before a Quidditch match. Harry didn't bother reading the description, because Malfoy had crossed out everything with ink, except for the word ' You-Know-Who'. There were small darts around the picture, including one write through his scar. Perhaps this was what Malfoy did in his free time: throw darts at Harry's picture. Angry, Harry tore the picture from the wall and threw it in the fire.  

Harry suspected Malfoy would sleep closest to the fire. Sure enough, when he opened the trunk, he found a Nimbus 2001 with _Draco Malfoy_ inscribed in it. Harry scoffed. _He_ would never inscribe his name in his Firebolt; that was just silly. 

Harry wasn't too keen on changing. He just took off his shoes and crawled in bed. The fire cast shadows around the dark dormitory, and Harry felt very uncomfortable in the soft bed. He felt a large weight of anxiety on his chest for the first time that night; perhaps because the fact that he was Malfoy was starting to sink in. Harry would miss his friends, Ron and Hermione, miserably. He didn't know if he could be a person he hated for two weeks. 

* * * * *

A/N: Sorry this one was a little short… and don't worry… our little Draco _will _put the invisibility cloak to use… Tell me (pleeeeze!) what you think so far and REVIEW *

-Gryffingirl


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: You know

Chapter 3 

When Draco woke up the following morning, the first thing he heard was a bunch of obnoxious birds outside twittering like mad.

_What is this nonsense?_ He thought. _There aren't any birds down here._

Then, Draco opened his eyes and realized he was still in the Gryffindor dormitory, where he had fallen asleep last night as Harry Potter. 

Draco groaned loudly. He had fell into a dreamless stupor, wishing the effect of the Devejuice Potion was just a bad nightmare. Yet, as he got out of bed and surveyed his reflection in the nearby mirror, he was assured otherwise. His usual beautifully groomed silvery blonde hair was replaced by a black untidy mess. _I look like hell_, he thought. 

Draco had fallen asleep with his glasses on. He fixed them straight on his nice round nose and glanced at the clock, which read 9:00. It was Saturday, but everybody was already gone. Draco's stomach rumbled. Remembering that he had skipped dinner the previous night, he descended the winding staircase to leave his dormitory, hoping against hope that Ron or Hermione or anybody else would not bother him.

* * * * *

In the Great Hall, Harry had already taken Malfoy's usual place at the Slytherin table. Crabbe and Goyle had followed him there and were once again putting loads of food in their mouths. 

Harry chewed his toast quietly and stared at the entrance. He was waiting for Ron and Hermione. They would walk in soon, and Harry would tell them exactly what happened. After all, they were his friends. They would understand.

" Mr. Malfoy," a drawling voice called behind him so suddenly that Harry jumped. He turned around and saw Snape's ugly face protruding from his black hair. "I booked the pitch for tonight at 7:00. Best be training if you want to catch the snitch before _Potter_ does." He said Harry's name in a very disliking tone.

Harry was puzzled for a moment, but then it hit him. Snape was talking about the Quidditch. Harry was also reminded horribly of something else: Malfoy was captain of the Slytherin team.

Harry nodded and swallowed his pumpkin juice with a loud gulp.

When Harry turned around, he saw Hermione, Ron, and… the fake Harry come into the Great Hall. Harry was not used to seeing himself from outside, yet there he was, looking very glum and walking alongside Hermione and Ron. Harry was briefly reminded of the time in his third year when he and Hermione used the time turner and Harry had seen himself from the outside. This experience was similar to that one..

Very abruptly, Harry stood up. Crabbe gaped at him with his mouth open. Chewed up bacon was visible as he sputtered, " What's wrong?"

Harry didn't answer Crabbe. Without thinking, he approached the three of them. 

" Go away, Malfoy. I don't want to start my day nauseous," Ron said. Hermione scowled and looked resolute. She glared angrily at Harry, who felt a little hurt. He was compelled to shout " But _I'm_ Harry!" he didn't want anybody else to hear him.

Draco spoke up. " If this is about the Potions assignment, we'll talk later." Hermione's face softened as she glanced from one figure to the other. " Meet me in the library tonight a 6:00," Draco said quickly. Hermione and Ron were walking away and a loud noise indicated that the mail had arrived. 

Harry returned to the Slytherin table, but could not bear to swallow his food as he gazed achingly at his friends, who were talking to Draco animatedly; Hedwig was perched upon the table, nibbling on toast. 

* * * * *

At 5:55, Harry had to physically pry himself away from Pansy Parkinson's grasp. She insisted that she wanted to show him something in her dormitory and kept contorting her pug-like face into a sly smile. 

At 6:10, he reached the library. It was very inconvenient, he thought, to live in the dungeons so far away from the rest of the school and his classes. He wished for the millionth time that he were the real Harry again.

Draco showed up ten minutes later with a very harassed look on his (Harry's) face. 

" You're late," Harry said, crossing his arms. He imagined his pointed face to have a very smug look at that moment.

" Your girlfriend," Draco said as though this settled the matter. 

" I haven't got a girlfriend," Harry said. " Who are you talking about?" 

Draco smirked. " Weasley. She kept asking me to help her with homework, 'cause Granger was busy or something… I wasn't paying attention anyway."

" Ginny's talking to me now?" Harry thought aloud.

" And that damn mudblood won't shut up either, telling me to not come and see you and a whole bunch of other crap. You should just get rid of her. One good Avada Kedavra curse should do the trick…"

Fury radiated in Harry's stomach and instinctively, he reached into his pocket to grab his wand. He was unpleasantly surprised to see there was nothing there. 

Draco laughed lightly. " Stupid Potter. I'm left-handed. Check the other pocket." He then added, " and you can't attack me with it either. A wizard's wand never works against its owner, no matter what they look like."

Frustrated, Harry simply grabbed the front of Draco's robes, twisting the Gryffindor patch between his long fingers. " If you ever hurt my friends, I won't wait one second after to you take that antidote to curse you," he growled.

Draco shoved Harry's hand off and gave him a piercing look through his glasses. " Whatever," he said. " Anyway, I thought we should lay some ground rules."

" Alright," said Harry instantly. " Leave my friends alone and I'll leave your – er – friends alone."

"As you know, Potter, I have quite a reputation." Draco started, ignoring Harry. He leaned against the chair and smiled, his green eyes twinkling. 

" Yeah, for being such a ----"

" My reputation," Draco interrupted, his eyes now cold. " Exceeds yours a great deal. You may be famous Harry Potter and all that crap but _I_ am a Malfoy. I am a pure-blood wizard, very wealthy, and," he smirked, " extremely good- looking."

Harry burst out laughing. " Arrogant, self-obsessed, and stupid git is more like it," he said through gasps. " How can you think so highly of yourself?"

Draco's cheeks turned slightly pink. " It's all very true, _Potter._ I mean, you _are_ very lucky to get such an exchange."

Harry stopped laughing. " Lucky?" he said, outraged. " You've got to be kidding. Everything I had in my old life, I miss already. I haven't found one thing in your life that I like! This was the stupidest idea ever."

" Well the same goes for me," Draco said. His mind, however, immediately averted to Harry's invisibility cloak in his dormitory, and he realized he wasn't exactly telling the truth.

" Well, maybe we can just spend the next two weeks in the hospital wing or something. We'll have Dumbledore tell everyone we were knocked unconscious in a fight," Harry said. 

" We can't," Draco said quietly. 

" Why the hell not!"

" Quidditch."

Both boys stayed very silent. Harry had forgotten about Quidditch since it was mentioned that morning. It had also slipped his mind that the Quidditch final was to be held in a week and half.

" I'll still be you then!" Harry said after reminding Draco about this. 

Draco rolled his eyes sardonically. " Yes that's right Professor Obvious. What are we going to do?" he asked. " I can't lead Gryffindor to victory… not that they would win anyway…"

" Shut it Malfoy. Let's not argue about that now. We'll both just play as if you're me and I'm you. I mean, we're both the seekers, so whoever catches the snitch catches the snitch," Harry said. 

" Fine," said Malfoy. " Since you're now captain of the Slytherin team, you'd better not take advantage."

" Snape booked the pitch tonight. I have practice with Slytherin at 7:00," Harry said. " I'll just pretend I'm you and act like I don't know what's going on and the only reason I was made captain was because my father had loads of money going into the 'kiss Marcus Flint's ass' account."

Draco scowled and was about the deliver a snappy comeback when Madam Pince screamed, " We're closing for the night! Everybody out! Everybody out!"

The boys gathered up their books and silently left the library.

* * * * *

Quidditch was Harry's favorite sport, but not the way the Slytherins played it.

Everybody was extremely unorganized. The beaters, Crabbe and Goyle, were beating each other with their clubs, ignoring the dangerous bludgers that sped toward the players. When Harry tossed the quaffle in the air, the three chasers sped toward it at the same time and slammed into each other. They proceeded to bicker about who it belonged to.

" Baddock," Harry screamed at a third year chaser. " You take it. Hand it over to Pritchard after you swing around the goalpost. Alderby, stay below him and when Pritchard feigns a toss at the goal while really dropping it to you, catch it and score while the keeper isn't looking."

" Huh?" was all he got from the three of them.

Harry gave an exasperated sigh as a bludger pelted toward him. Using his seeker skills, Harry narrowly missed it as it tousled his neatly gelled silvery hair.

" Crabbe! Goyle!" he shouted loudly, and was surprised at sounding so much like Malfoy. " Take control of that bludger. You three," he said, pointing to the chasers. " We're going to work something out."

* * * * *

Draco returned to the common room and to his relief, Harry's friends were not there. Ron had told him at breakfast that morning that he had found in the dungeons a love note addressed to Pansy Parkinson by Draco Malfoy. Draco, obviously having never had written such a thing, fought the great urge to punch Ron in the face for laughing about it. 

 Draco decided to go to bed early again, but Ron, who appeared through the portrait hole, stopped him.

" Hey Harry," he called. " Wanna play chess?"

" Er ---- no," said Draco coldly. 

" What's the matter?" said Ron the side of his mouth twitching as he approached who he thought was his best friend. " 'Fraid I'll beat you again?"

Draco clenched his fist. A furtively evil smile appeared on his (Harry's) face. He and his father played wizard chess all the time, and he had been able to beat much older people before he even came to Hogwarts. He was indeed very good at chess.

But Ron didn't know that. 

" Sure," said Draco, as sweetly as he could. " Let's play."

* * * * *

An hour later, the common room was still packed and noisy. Both Ron and Draco were rubbing their chins in deep concentration. 

" What happened to you Harry? How did you get so good?" He directed his rook to move a few spaces ahead.

Draco almost laughed with glee. He was beating Ron, but barely. He could feel the checkmate closer, but didn't know exactly what he had to do to get there. 

" I'm usually finished with you by now!" said Ron. Draco widened his eyes. _Finally,_ he thought. _Something I'm good at that famous Harry Potter's not._

Draco cocked his head to the side. He would have to sacrifice his bishop. He would then be free to checkmate the king. Ron, obviously not spotting this, moved his battered rook to the bishop. The small piece jumped in the air and came crashing down upon the head of its opponent. 

" Checkmate," Draco muttered, moving his piece to the desire square. He was surprisingly pleased with himself. 

Ron gaped at the chessboard in horror for a moment. " You beat me!" said Ron.

Draco had to admit that it wasn't very easy, for Ron wasn't such a bad player himself. " I know," he said, trying not to sound too excited. It was just that it had been so long since he had a good challenge in chess. Playing with people like Crabbe and Goyle was hardly difficult.

Ron smiled proudly. " Nice Harry. Very nice."

Draco couldn't help smiling back. " So, what's my prize?"

Ron frowned slightly. " Prize?"

Draco stared at Ron. Perhaps poor boys like Weasley played chess differently. On the rare occasions that Draco beat his father at wizard chess, Lucius would award Draco with a few galleons or a new racing broom. When he played with other Slytherins (and won), he received prizes like a few sickles and knuts. 

" I didn't know we were playing for anything," said Ron nervously. The smile had disappeared from his face. Draco sighed. He should have known that a Weasley wouldn't have enough in their bank account to even count for a single prize anyway. " I could give you this," Ron said. He pulled from his pocket a chocolate frog.

" Alright," Draco said and took it from Ron. _It's not like I'll get anything better from a Weasley,_ he thought. He opened the box and took out the card. He saw who it was and a boiling hate erupted in his chest.

"_Harry Potter._"

" They made a card of _you?_" Ron approached Draco and looked at the picture of Harry in his Quidditch robes, his black hair tousled and his cheeks red from a rigorous match. The golden snitch was fluttering in his hand and it flew away from his grasp almost instantly. 

" I suppose you could give that to Dennis Creevey," Ron said with a laugh. " Or my sister."

" I think I'll keep it," Draco said with a smirk, wondering if Harry had any darts in his trunk.

" I didn't know they made those," said a small voice next to Draco's chair that made his jump and look behind him. Ginny was looking at the card with a furtive smile on her face.

" No, you didn't. Or else you would have gone through all of them to look for it, right Gin?" Ron said, grinning. 

Ginny's cheeks flushed red as she fidgeted next to Draco, who thought she looked quite cute doing it.

" I'm tired," stated Draco, although he really wasn't. He felt irritated with the Weasleys and with himself for even thinking for a second that one of them was cute.  

" Good night," Ron called as he departed. Draco reached the dormitory and took off his shoes and robes and began removing his pants; he suddenly felt very uncomfortable. This was obviously a problem that he and Harry needed to discuss: changing and showering. Too uncomfortable now to even take off his socks, Draco crawled into the bed for the second night in a row in Harry's school clothes. 

* * * * *

A/N: I apologize… this is moving a little slow. Be patient, for they need some time to adjust. Things will start happening in the next chapter, and I promise to upload those A/S/A/P…so stay tuned… and PLEASE REVIEW!! 

- Gryffingirl


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: no money is being made, Harry Potter characters belong to JKR and WB, and I drank too much Pepsi and now I'm feeling crazy.

Chapter 4 

Harry had obviously come across the same problem Draco had after his first Quidditch practice when he desperately needed a shower. Both boys secretly (and rather uncomfortably) discussed this, and both agreed to change as infrequently as possible and wear blindfolds when showering.

" Not that I have anything to hide…" Draco said rather defensively.

"Neither do I…" retorted Harry. They never discussed it again.

* * * * *

As training showed little progress for the Slytherin team, the Gryffindors were preparing for their final match with more effort and concentration than ever. During the first practice that Draco attended, he couldn't help being slightly impressed at the organization of the team. What did bother him, however, was their discipline to follow the rules.

In his first practice, clad in Harry's red Quidditch robes, Draco hovered over the field on the Firebolt. Although he missed his own broom, he liked that the Firebolt followed his mind rather than his grip. 

A bludger suddenly came pelting his way, interrupting his thoughts. Not as quick as Harry was, however, Draco ducked away and the bludger hit his broom, making it spin around in midair.

" All right there, Harry?" asked Kevin White, one of the fifth year beaters, as he smacked the bludger away. Draco felt slightly embarrassed. Suddenly, the snitch appeared from the corner of his left eye. Draco swerved in its direction, as the whole team watched him. He squinted and didn't dare tear his eyes away from the fleck of gold that was streaking around the goalposts. Draco sped in that direction and reached out his hand, but the snitch flew a little higher. Draco adjusted himself to reach higher, but then the snitch moved to the right. Draco turned, and rather aggressively, made another grab for it, but the snitch just moved more to the right. If the snitch had a voice, Draco could have sworn it was taunting him. 

Without thinking, Draco reached for his wand. He pointed it at the snitch, which was flying away. 

"_Accio, Golden Snitch_!" he exclaimed. It stopped in the sky and zoomed into Draco's hand. 

Smiling, he looked down at his team. Nobody else, however, looked pleased. 

" What was that, Harry?" said Katie Bell, the captain, who swooped up to Draco's level on her broomstick. The rest of the team followed, all with confused looks on their faces. 

" What do you mean? I got the snitch!" Draco exclaimed, holding the golden ball between his fingers. Its wings stopped fluttering, as if giving up. 

" But you used your wand. You're not supposed to do that," Katie said, frowning. " What's wrong, Harry? You _never_ had to resort to something like that to catch the snitch." She shook her head disapprovingly. " You know you're too good to do that, and I hope you don't pull the same stunt in the final." 

The Gryffindor team resumed their practice and avoided Draco, who felt very embarrassed and furious. 

* * * * *

After practice, Ron and Hermione were waiting outside the locker room. Draco had missed breakfast because practice had started at 5:30 that morning. He glanced at Harry's watch, which read 9:00, and realized how starving he was. 

Just then, Hermione handed him a piece of buttered toast in a napkin. Draco took it rather reluctantly and chewed off half of it. It was still warm and had just the right amount of butter on it. Thankful and a little surprised, he bit into it. 

" We thought you might be hungry," said Hermione smiling. " We're going to Hagrid's now." She touched his arm briefly, and Draco, disgusted, recoiled. He didn't want her _mudblood_ on him…

Draco had to admit, however, that it was nice of them to bring him breakfast. He didn't think Crabbe of Goyle would have been smart enough to think the same way.

As they walked up the sloping lawn and across the vast dewy grounds, Hagrid's hut that stood at the edge of the forest came into view. Draco was rather reluctant to see Hagrid. He didn't like that blustering half-blood oaf.

_The people Potter hangs around with_, Draco thought glumly as Hermione and Ron walked hand in hand, bickering about house-elves.

Hagrid opened the door as they reached it. " Saw yeh comin' through the window. Come in."

Draco peered around the inside of Hagrid's house and wrinkled his nose. He decided the day _he_ would live in a place like this was the day he would throw his Nimbus in the Great Lake.

Rusted pots and pans and dead animals hung in front the dusty fireplace. In the corner was a very large bed, and on it was the most ugly quilt Draco had ever seen. He couldn't believe the great and famous Harry Potter associated with such people.

As Hagrid, Hermione, and Ron proceeded to discuss schoolwork and Quidditch over tea and scones, Draco sat silently in his chair, wondering when he'd be able to leave. Hagrid's enormous hand slapped his back and he was abruptly brought back to his senses.

" Yer gonna win Gryffindor the cup, Harry," Hagrid said. " Yer a damn good Quidditch player if I've seen one."

" I don't know," said Draco, a little spiffed. " Slytherin's got some good players too. Like that Draco Malfoy…"

Ron spit out his tea and laughed. " Malfoy has never caught the snitch before you did!" he exclaimed. " He probably wouldn't be able to catch it using magic, let alone his own arm!"

Recalling that morning's practice, Draco decided not to say anymore. 

* * * * *

Draco worked on Harry's homework in the Gryffindor common room later that night. Thankfully, Hermione and Ron were nowhere to be seen. Draco couldn't stand that they considered themselves equal to him; he was so inured to being around inferiors. 

Ginny came through the portrait hole and Draco groaned when she seemed to have spotted him. She approached him nervously, her hands in her pockets. " Hello, Harry."

Draco said nothing as she extracted her right hand from her pocket and offered something in it to him. 

" Your- er – card. You left it in the common room last night." She dropped the chocolate frog card of Harry on the table in front of Draco. Harry was riding his Firebolt in the background, coming and going in the picture at a fast speed. 

" _Show off_," Draco muttered incredibly softly. Ginny didn't seem to hear him, as she was too preoccupied staring at the card.

" So… are you going to keep it?" she mumbled blushing furiously and running her worn out sneaker around the carpet. A loose red ringlet fell across her face, its vivid color competing with the one of Ginny's face. 

Draco was secretly disgusted. " You keep it," he said.

" Er—Harry. Do you think you could still help me with my homework? Because I can't find Hermione anywhere."

" I'm busy," Draco answered coldly. He wanted to be left alone.

" Er, all right," she answered, more than a little hurt. " Hermione might know more about Potions anyway." She began to walk away.

Draco snickered. Nobody, _nobody_, was better than Potions than he was, he thought hotly. He simply hated that Ginny had said that, and felt a strange thirst to prove himself, as he had when playing chess with Ron the other night. 

Reluctantly, he looked up at Ginny's retreating back. " Wait. I'll help you."

* * * * *

Harry walked into the Slytherin common room that night, after another Quidditch practice with the Slytherins. He was tired of their inability to follow rules. He felt physically fatigued from his yelling, and made his way to Draco's dormitory with a desire to be alone.

Unluckily for him, Pansy Parkinson popped up in a matter of seconds.

" What's wrong, Draco? Are you okay?" she asked, smirking. " Do you need a backrub?"

" NO!" Harry was taken back by her willingness to get so close to him. He honestly didn't want her near him at all.

" Are you sure?" she purred in a low voice. " I give good ones."

Now disgusted, Harry walked around her and headed down the spiraling staircase. To his disgust, Pansy followed. 

" Draco, Draco, Draco…don't be shy!"

" Er --- I'm tired. Maybe some other time…." _Like in two weeks_.

Harry reached the door to the dormitory, and she was still there, a sly and expecting look on her face. " It'll cheer you up. And I won't leave you alone until you let me!"

_She's probably _serious, Harry thought. He tried his best not to let the repulsion he was feeling show on his face. He breathed heavily and glanced at her apprehensively, afraid of her reaction to what he was about to tell her. 

" Alright, but a _really, really_ quick one."

Pansy shrieked with delight and hugged Harry, who immediately regretted his decision. It was, however, possibly the only way she would leave him alone. 

She opened the door to the dorm, and the moment they stepped in, flames magically erupted in the fireplace.

Harry sat on Draco's bed and she crawled behind him, placing her manicured hands on his shoulders. Harry felt so violated for some reason, and quite embarrassed. 

" Just relax, Draco. You're so tense." Pansy began massaging his shoulders and Harry tried as hard as he could to maintain his apathetic appearance, when on the inside, he was clearly revolted. " How was your Quidditch practice?" she asked, trying to engage him in conversation.

" Er – good," he lied. He wanted to say as little as possible to prevent her from staying too long. 

" Draco, love," she started. " We've been friends for a long time… right? And we, er, had fun at the Yule Ball together. Maybe we should…"

Harry nervously squirmed under Pansy's grasp. What she was about to suggest, he didn't know, but he felt it would definitely be something he _wouldn't_ want to do.

" We should go steady," she finished. She contorted her face into a pleased smile as she wrapped her arms slowly around Harry, who felt close to being violently sick. Pansy leaned in close to his ear and breathed, " I'd make a great girlfriend…"

Harry had enough. Very abruptly, he stood up, releasing himself from Pansy.  "Er---," he started. How was he to answer her? " Let's just… be friends…" his voice trailed off into the air uneasily.

Pansy smirked. " Don't be shy," she said. " You know you agree."

Harry found himself wishing furiously that he never let her into the dormitory. Uncomfortably, he said the only thing that would possibly get him out of his predicament. 

" Let me get back to you. I'll, er, think about it."

Remotely pleased but not fully satisfied, Pansy stood up and approached Harry, who shuddered under her piercing stare. 

" Fine, but hurry," she said and pinched him playfully on the cheek and walked out. 

As soon as the door closed and Harry heard her footsteps depart, he flopped onto Draco's bed and lay staring at the stone ceiling.

_By far,_ he thought, _I definitely prefer Ginny_…

* * * * *

Draco, after an hour of helping Ginny, went up to Harry's dormitory. He was unsatisfied with having to prove himself to Ginny Weasley, but felt that he had done a good job, for she seemed impressed with his knowledge in Potions. 

_Perhaps,_ Draco thought, _there are many things I can do that one-up Potter_.  (A/N: you wish, Malfoy…)

Draco entered the dorm and headed for the bed. He stubbed his toe on Harry's trunk as he crawled under the covers and cursed loudly. He kicked the trunk for hurting his precious toe and it opened, Harry's invisibility cloak visible on top of his schoolbooks.

Draco hesitated before picking it up, letting the silky material seductively slide through his fingers. 

_It's still early,_ he argued. _And there's nobody here_.

Draco stood up and slowly wrapped the cloak around his body, hiding himself from the human eye. He had the free and wonderful feeling inside, as he did the first time he had put it on. Draco had the immense urge to explore the castle. He closed the hangings to the bed to indicate that he was asleep, then tiptoed from the dorm down the spiraling staircase, anticipating the possible adventure that awaited him.

REVIEW, PLEASE!! *

- Gryffingirl


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: You know

A/N: Thanks a whole bunch to those who reviewed! Now I proceed with the story… and give you Draco's first invisible adventure!! Please review when you're done!! ;-)

Chapter 5 

The invisibility cloak tight around his body, Draco stepped out of the portrait hole.

" Who's that?" The Fat Lady asked surprisingly. Draco ignored her and tiptoed quickly down the cold dark corridor. Where was he to go from here?

_The Slytherin common room_, Draco thought almost immediately, his quick feet pursuing the moonlight cast on the floor and carrying him away from the Gryffindor common room. He passed creepy Mrs. Norris while hurrying down the marble staircase, and almost ran through the entrance hall, and into the dungeons. 

As he reached the invisible door to the Slytherin common room, he whispered, "_Mudblood Yuck"_ and the wall opened to let in the invisible Draco.

The fire in the common room was still lit and roaring. Draco heard voices coming from the high-backed chairs, which were conveniently facing the opposite direction, and the inhabitants of each did not see the door open.

Draco approached the chairs, where Avery, Crabbe, Goyle, and Nott sat. 

_Ah_, he thought,_ my true friends_. He placed himself in an empty chair next to Avery.

" Yeah, he's been acting real strange," Nott said, fiddling with the torn velvet fabric on the chair. " I'll bet he's real pissed 'cause his mommy hasn't sent him sweets in a while." 

Draco smiled. _Who could he be talking about? _He wondered.

" Or hair potion," said Avery, smirking. " Have you seen his hair lately? It's a mess…"

Draco cast his mind over the people he knew in Slytherin. Who were they talking about?

" Too bad _Sir_ Draco Malfoy went to bed so early. We didn't get a chance to hear him brag about all the seventh year girls who all fancy him," said Nott. He scoffed annoyingly. " Yeah, right. More like hate him. Where does he get the stupid idea they like a slimy git like him?"

Draco went rigid in his chair. _Are they talking about… about me?_ He looked from Avery to Nott to Crabbe and Goyle. They seemed rather indifferent, as if they talked like this all the time. 

" At least he doesn't boss _you_ around," said Crabbe very suddenly, looking almost sad. 

Goyle piped in. " Yeah, if he tells me to do one more thing for him, I'll ---- er----,"

" Curse him…" Crabbe finished. 

They spoke quite slowly in a drawling manner, as if having to think very hard to make a statement. Even Draco knew that on the rare occasions they said something, it was quite worthwhile to hear them out.  

Upon hearing part of this conversation, Draco was livid. His blood simply _boiled_ beneath his skin, and he had the strongest urge to tear off the invisibility cloak and curse each person so badly they would never be able to talk about him so insultingly _ever_ _again_…

More than angry, he made his way down to their dormitory, where Harry was peacefully sleeping in Draco's bed. 

" _Fixus_," he muttered, pointing his wand at Harry's silvery hair. The untidy strands flew back into place, sleek and neat. 

He then proceeded to light a small and inextinguishable green fire in the beds of Goyle, Crabbe, Avery, and Nott. He made sure to put another spell on the fires to prevent them from spreading before proceeding back up to the common room in a most satisfied mood. 

He approached the top of the stone staircase and emerged into the quiet common room, where his four "friends" still sat in their chairs, unaware of the fires that were burning through their sheets at that very moment. 

With a loud gasp, Crabbe pointed his fat finger in Draco's direction, who abruptly turned around to see what was wrong. There was, however, nothing behind him. 

Nott, Avery, and Goyle turned their heads in the direction, and each of them gasped as well. 

It slowly and painfully dawned on Draco that it was he who Crabbe pointed to. He had left the invisibility cloak in the dormitory, and furthermore, there was another very upsetting problem: They thought he was Harry. 

* * * * *

Although immensely angry and shocked at finding none other than famous and much hated Harry Potter, a Gryffindor, in their Slytherin common room at midnight, Avery, Nott, Crabbe, and Goyle took much satisfaction in marching red-faced Harry (Draco) deeper into the dungeons to Snape's office. 

Avery knocked loudly. 

" Who's there?" an annoyed and rebuking voice finally answered. 

" Professor Snape, it's me, Richard. We're here to report somebody," said Avery with too much glee. 

" It can wait!" Snape barked. " Go back to bed!"

" But, sir," said Nott in a most unctuous tone that bothered Draco greatly. " We found him sneaking around the Slytherin common room… and he's a _Gryffindor_!"

" Who is it?" Snape asked through the door, sounding a little more interested. 

" Harry Potter, sir."

There was silence as the students (even a very nervous Draco) waited for Snape's reply. The sound of Snape's approaching footsteps on the opposite side of the door was the sound of impending doom to Draco. In a normal situation, where he was himself, Draco did not worry about being punished by Snape, for it was obvious Snape favored him, even among the Slytherins. 

But with six years of being in Harry's Potions class, it was common knowledge to Draco that Snape absolutely abhorred Harry, which to Draco's current disappointment, was helped by him. He regretted making Harry look bad to Snape, for it had apparently come back to bite him in the ass now…

" Mr. Potter…" said Snape's drawling voice as the door creaked open. He looked as if Christmas had come early. " Do explain…"

Avery, rocking back and forth on his feet in excitement, told Snape he found him in the Slytherin common room. " He was poking around, sir. I don't know why though…"

" Potter, what in the world _were_ you doing?" Snape asked. 

Draco knew that no matter what he said, it would only make matters worse, so he chose to remain silent and look cowardly at his feet. 

" I'll bet he was spying! Or... ooh! Professor Snape! We saw him come up from the dormitories! Maybe he did something to our rooms… or Draco!" Nott said excitedly.

Snape's face changed from amused to serious. " Draco was there? Let us go investigate."

Nott, Avery, Crabbe, and Goyle led the way quietly, while Snape trailed behind, standing very close to Draco, not tearing his eyes off him.

" Potter," he whispered in a voice the others couldn't hear. " You always did think rules were below you, considering you got away with the things you did. Big- headed, aren't you? Well, don't think you can get out of this one." His voice dropped even lower and was dangerously close to disappearing into thin air. " I've caught you, Potter, and _this time, there's absolutely no way out."_

Draco was in no way used to way Snape spoke to him, and felt his bravery leave him through his throat, which was locked up and prevented him from saying a word.

Soon, they were in the common room, then descending the stairs to the dormitory, then in the dormitory. 

On every bed but Draco's was a large green fire burning through the velvet sheets, their long flames dancing dangerously close to the stone ceiling. 

Everybody but Draco's eyes widened and Nott screamed, " MY BED!"

" _Hydrondium_!" Snape bellowed and water shot out of his wand at great pressure towards the fires. And yet, they still burned. " Enchanted fires," Snape muttered before shouting " _Douses_!" The flames almost immediately died down and disappeared.  

Snape turned to Draco while Crabbe and Goyle hurried to where Harry slept, checking to see if he was okay. 

Draco didn't need to be told he was in a huge amount of trouble. 

Harry stirred in his sleep; he heard voices and opened his eyes slightly. He saw Goyle and Crabbe hovering over his bed. The room was dark and smelled oddly of smoke. Harry sat up and opened his mouth to scream but stopped himself in time. Avery and Nott were at the door, and alongside them stood a very angry looking Snape and… himself.

Harry had to remind himself that the boy was actually Draco. Nevertheless, he said his thoughts aloud. " _What is he doing here?_"

" Mr. Malfoy, Potter has snuck in here tonight and stupidly planted fires on everybody's bed, no doubt for his own amusement and unaware of the fact that he could have hurt anybody," Snape said, almost kindly to him.

Harry was still numb with shock. He tired to process the information in his head and clarify everything.

Draco had snuck down the Slytherin dormitory and set fire to the beds? It didn't make any sense to Harry.

" Come, Potter. You will be far worse than punished for this. You've crossed the line." Snape jerked his head towards the door and Draco slowly made his way out of it, Snape following and slamming the door behind him.

Harry's head spun wildly. Was this a dream? He laid himself back on his bed, ignoring everybody else, who was asking hastily if he was okay. 

_Malfoy's got me in so much trouble_, he thought. He covered his face in hands and groaned loudly. _And I'm stuck in Malfoy's body and there's nothing I can do…Damn him!_

" Are you all right, Draco?" Crabbe asked timidly from next to him and Harry managed to mutter a strained yes through his hands. 

* PLEASE REVIEW!!! *

- Gryffingirl


	6. Chapter 6

A/N: I wanted to acknowledge in this chapter that Draco's got problems too (besides the psychological ones I made clear in the previous chapter). Thanks to those people kind enough to review!!

Disclaimer: Characters and Hogwarts belong to J.K. Rowling.

Chapter 6 

Just when Snape was sure he had Harry in trouble, he was once again _bitterly_ disappointed. Dumbledore, who was aware of the circumstances with Harry and Draco, spoke with Snape to give Draco only two weeks' detention.

" But Headmaster," he had argued. " You would only be encouraging the boy to believe he _is _above the rules… which he most certainly isn't!"

Nevertheless, the Headmaster got his way and Draco was not as severely punished as he thought he would be. 

* * * * * 

The morning after Draco's 'adventure', Harry sat in the Great Hall with Crabbe and Goyle. He tried to swallow his bacon, but he was too angry. Malfoy was extremely irresponsible and selfish to do what he did, and Harry thought he did it just to get him in trouble. In Harry's body, Malfoy did have the ability to do as he pleased and have Harry blamed for it. __

_Why else would he set his own friends' beds on fire? He wants Snape to hate me more._

Harry was so distracted that he had to be brought to attention when a large package landed in his lap, dropped by a brown eagle owl, which was gliding around in circles over Harry's head. 

He ripped open the package. In it was Cauldron cakes, Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Beans, Acid Pops, Sugar Quills, and Chocolate Frogs.

Was today Draco's birthday? Harry laid the sweets on the table, so surprised he almost didn't notice the letter that came with the package. 

Harry wasn't sure whether he should open it or not, for it was Draco's letter, not his, and it could contain personal information Harry knew he didn't have a right to know…

He opened the letter. 

Dearest Draco, 

You may not hear from your father in a while. He was forced to flee, because the Ministry is asking questions using Verisaterum. He has gone to the country your great-grandmother lives in; you know where that is.

I do not know when he will come back, but I want you to keep your head low and if the Ministry is ever to question you, act oblivious.   

I sent you some sweets and I do hope you enjoy them. Owl me when you run out.

Love, your mother

Harry folded up the letter and stuffed it back into the envelope. Should he give the letter to Malfoy?

He scribbled _Library at 8:00_ beneath the message. He tied it to Draco's eagle owl and sent the messenger bearing the very personal letter to Draco at the Gryffindor table. He then left the Hall quickly, leaving his uneaten food behind.

* * * * *

The prospect of having detention for the next two weeks, three hours a day, was bad enough for Draco. But the worst of his troubles arrived by owl that morning, when he received a letter from his mother. 

Since the Dark Lord's return, Draco grew inured to his father's frequent disappearances. He fled very often to different places in the world, living in fear that somebody from the ministry would place him in Azkaban.

Subsequent to Voldemort's return, a death eater, possibly a spy, ratted out the names of several of Voldemort's supporters to the Ministry. Lucius Malfoy was on the list.

Now, Malfoy had to endure his father's disappearances and his very worried mother. 

Distracted, he followed Ron absentmindedly up many flights of stairs to the North Tower for Divination.

Draco stepped into the extremely hot and stuffy room, perfumed waves danced around him and he immediately felt sleepy. 

Draco had never taken Divination before, and was instantly startled by the appearance of Professor Trelawney.

She emerged from the shadows silently and approached Draco, her insect eyes wide with fear behind her giant spectacles.

" My dear, you look troubled. I can almost see Neptune in your eyes. Its most interesting alignment tells me people with green eyes are currently going through a very difficult and pivotal time in their life."

Ron rolled his eyes and led Draco to their usual table, far from the fire. " Barking mad," he muttered and Draco privately agreed. 

" Class, we will be starting with Divination cards now." She pulled out a deck of large cards. Lavender and Parvati looked more excited than ever. Professor Trelawney pulled out from the deck a card with a turquoise planet on it. " Beware of this card," she said sadly, " for Neptune is the planet that only brings bad luck." She glanced at Draco.

After an hour of flipping through meaningless cards, the bell chimed indicating the end of class. 

" Harry, may I see you for a moment," Professor Trelawney called sadly. Parvati gave a concerned look towards Draco before descending down the ladder.

Draco approached Trelawney and was surprised to see massive tears behind her glasses. " Oh, Harry…" she said, sniffling loudly. " I don't think there is any easy was to tell you this, so I will just go right out and say it…" She wiped her eyes slowly on the edge of her shawl. Draco grew impatient as she took her time to blow her nose into a handkerchief.  " Like I said, Neptune is not a good sign, and as I was looking over the cards… I realized that the alignment has never made more sense! Harry Potter…" she said. Draco stared at her, waiting for her to finish. What was so important? 

" IT WILL HAPPEN TONIGHT!" she wailed at the top of her lungs, her head tilted backwards. She was bawling now, tears overflowing out of her insect eyes and streaking down her face. " All these years, I have waited and waited, and now I am _sure_. You will die, Harry, and it will happen tonight!"

" What?" Draco stared at Trelawney, who continued to cry at the top of her lungs. She was now clutching Draco's shoulders tightly. " How – how am I going to _die_?"

Draco stood in absolute shock. He wasn't one to believe any of this phony, but her serious tone frightened him What if he did die tonight? Besides, how many times did one ever get told they would die?

* * * * *. 

Harry met Draco in the library at 8:00, as he promised. Neither could stay for long, however. Draco had detention and Harry had Quidditch practice at 8:15.

" You read the letter, didn't you?" Draco said as Harry approached him.

" Doesn't exactly compare in the crime factor to lighting beds on fire, does it?" 

Draco recoiled. " The letter was personal," he said. " And you had no right to read it."

" Why did you set the beds on fire?" Harry asked angrily. 

" Because I like to set people's beds on fire," said Draco sarcastically. 

" You got me in loads of trouble!"

" It doesn't matter, Potter. I'm the one who has to serve detention."

" That's not the point, Malfoy. Snape and everybody else think it was _me_ who snuck into the dormitory! Snape's gonna have that hanging over my head for the rest of the year!"

Draco was suddenly reminded of Harry's fate. Off-topic, he said, " There may not be a rest of the year."

" Huh?"

" Trelawney said you're going to die tonight," said Draco in a whisper.

Harry stared. " You're kidding."

Draco nodded. He wouldn't have felt bad if Harrywasn't currently in _his_ body.

To his surprise, Harry raised his eyebrows and laughed. " You _believed _her?"

Draco grew angry. Here he was, concerned for himself and Harry was laughing. " Well, how many times do you hear that kind of news?"

" Er—only every time I see her. Stupid git, she tells me I'm going to die all the time!"

Harry's statement slowly sunk into Draco. " Oh," he said feeling stupider by the second. 

" I have Quidditch practice. I'm leaving," said Harry, a smirk visible on his pale face. He picked up his bag and left. 

Draco gathered his things and headed for the dungeons, where he was to receive his detention assignment. 

* * * * *

Snape sat in his office at his desk, fervently working on something. Draco came in, and Snape quickly pulled to paper out of sight. " _Potter_," he spat. " You're late."

Draco glanced at the clock on the wall and saw it read 8:10. " You told me to come at 8:15."

Snape rose from his chair, not taking his cold black eyes off of Draco's. " I _specifically_ said eight o'clock."

Draco frowned. He _knew_ Snape said no such thing. He had told Draco to come at 8:15. 

" You are to go out to Hagrid's cabin, Potter, where you will be accompanied into the _Forbidden _Forest." Snape emphasized _Forbidden_ with much glee, no doubt hoping to scare him.

Draco recalled the last time he entered the forest, in his first year. He knew he didn't want to go back in there again. Nevertheless, he tried his best to look indifferent as he left the office.

Down the sloping lawn to Hagrid's lit cabin Draco went. He approached the garden, where Hagrid was standing with Fang.

" Harry!" he said excitedly. He then lowered his head to look at Draco straight in the eyes. " I her'd what yeh did ter th' Slytherins." He shook his massive head. " Not th' way t' go, Harry. Sure, they're a slimy lot, but yeh shouldn't go lightin' they're beds on fire…"

Draco glared at Hagrid. _Shut up you half-blood oaf_, he thought. 

The door to the cabin opened and a figure emerged with Fang at her heels. 

" Yeh'll be goin' with Ginny and Fang inter th' Forest," Hagrid said with a grin. " I trust yeh ter behave and collect root o' Wechter and some bark o' ash. Dumbledore's needin' it fer some special potion."

Draco felt ready to run away. This was possibly worse than the last time he went into the forest, for now, annoying Ginny was to be at his side.

" Let's go," he said to Ginny, leading the way. He wanted to get this over with. Fang growled at Draco as they followed.

Into the dark and quiet forest they went, the tips of their wands illuminating the ground as they walked ahead. Ginny stumbled clumsily over her own feet several times, jumping at the small noises that erupted in the darkness around her.

" Do you know what Wechter looks like?" asked Ginny. Draco nodded. Wechter was a small violet flower that grew in bunches away from trees.

" We're going to have to find a clearing, as they don't grow by trees," he said.

They followed the path, Fang panting at their heels. Draco had not said a word, and didn't plan to unless it was absolutely necessary.

" So…" started Ginny, her voice almost a whisper. " What did you do to get detention?"

Draco didn't plan on answering, but even if he had, Ginny wouldn't have heard. Something jumped on her and threw her back to the ground screaming. Her lit wand rolled out of her hand as she hit the soil.

" Get out of here fireball," said a new voice. The small creature suddenly jumped off of Ginny and scurried away, leaving Ginny groaning in pain. 

Draco approached the shaken figure and helped her up with his hand. By the wand light, he could see her face was very red.

" What was that?" she asked. 

Draco shrugged. If he was much mistaken, the creature had talked. Trying very hard not to let his fear show to his face, he turned around and continued walking.

Ginny picked up her wand and more nervous than ever, followed. To Draco's satisfaction, she had forgotten about her previous question.

They continued to walk, alert and silent. Draco kept his eyes open for clearings. 

" Do you reckon any of these trees are ash?" asked Ginny. 

Draco knew what ash looked like; his wand was made of it. " No," he simply said. 

They trudged on.

Without warning, a small cry permeated the air. Something fast, black, and small swooped over their heads, skidding Draco's messy hair. Behind him, Ginny shrieked. Draco suddenly felt her arm grabbing his. " Let's go!" she shouted, pulling him ahead, Fang at her heels. 

Draco had just enough time to turn around to see the small black thing that swooped over him… and about five hundred of its friends. 

They swarmed like angry bats, apparently angry with the intruders in their midst. Without thinking further, Draco ran with Ginny, through thick branches, their feet pounding on the soil as they moved forward. 

* * * * *

On the outskirts of the Forbidden Forest lay the Quidditch pitch, where Harry was fervently training with the Slytherins. He found he liked being captain and taking control of an entire team. He had to admit, the team had improved since their first practice. 

At the end of practice, they went into the locker room. Even after a rigorous practice, Harry saw that Draco Malfoy's face did not have a hint of red; it was paler than ever. 

Somewhere on the other side of the row of lockers, Harry heard a soft scratching sound followed by lots of laughter. He went to inspect and saw the rest of the team was crowded around a wall. 

" What's up?" he asked. The crowd dispersed. 

" We're just laughing at the stuff you wrote on this wall last week!" said Baddock, smirking. " And we're adding to it." 

Harry leaned over the see just what Draco had apparently inscribed on the wall the previous week. In big letters, it said: _Potter has no broomstick_.

The Slytherins were laughing heartily and Harry managed to force a small laugh, but his insides were mangled with fury.

" Look what I wrote!" said Baddock. He stepped away from where he was, staring at a different spot on the wall.

The Slytherins crowded around it and roared with laughter. Harry, trying his best to keep his arms from punching everybody around him, read the new comment: _Potter can catch a snitch, but he sure as hell can't catch a girl_.

" My turn!" exclaimed Alderby excitedly. He forced a loose nail out of the wall.  

" _No_!" shouted Harry. The team went quiet and looked at him. Harry was glad he couldn't turn red and said as calmly as he could, " It'll be obvious we did it. We'll get in trouble." He stalked off silently.

The rest of the team left the locker room, except for Crabbe and Goyle who stayed behind to wait for their leader. As Harry walked out with his cronies, he stopped and said, " I forgot my socks. I'll catch up." 

When he was sure they were gone, he took a nail from the wall and carved beneath what Malfoy had written: _Impotent bouncing ferrets have no right to make fun of others_.

* * * * *

The bats chased Draco, Ginny, and Fang through the forest, tittering loudly. They flapped their tiny wings hard, trying to catch up. Out of exhaustion, Ginny fell to the ground and brought Draco down with her. The bats unknowingly flew over their heads and disappeared in the dark.

Panting but not getting up, Ginny said, " I thought bats were gentle."

" Apparently not," muttered Draco. He tried to get up, but he felt warm weight on his back. " Weasley, get off me."

" Oh!" Ginny rolled off Draco, extremely embarrassed and stood up as he did. They brushed the leaves and dirt off of their robes.

Draco found his robes were torn at the hem. _At least they're Potter's_, he thought. Without warning, his stomach suddenly growled loudly.

Ginny chuckled quietly. " I'll bet there's something we can eat in this forest. Let's just follow the trail and see what we come across."

Fang trotted alongside them, whining softly. While Draco kept his eyes open for Ash, Ginny kept hers open for food. 

" Ah," she said after a minute of silence. She knelt by a bush. Draco saw, by his wand light, what looked like blueberries grew from it. Ginny picked some and scooped them in her chest pocket. 

" Give me some," Draco demanded coldly. 

Ginny frowned. " Not unless you ask nicely."

Draco wondered whether he should hit Ginny with something heavy, but his hunger got the best of him and he found himself saying, " Can I have some?"  By the faint light, Draco saw Ginny's red brow rise. " Please," he muttered. 

Ginny put some berries in Draco's hand and without hesitation, he at them. The sweet juice bust from each berry and quenched his thirst as well. 

Ginny had pocketed hers and did not eat any. She stood up and they continued walking. 

Draco saw ahead of him a clearing. He rushed forward and stepped into it. It was as if a violet carpet spread before him on the ground. 

" Is this Wechter?" asked Ginny behind him. Draco didn't bother answering her. He knelt down and scraped some of the roots out of the soil. Ginny did the same. 

After collecting what seemed like a sufficient amount of Wechter, they grabbed Fang and started heading back to Hagrid's cabin as fast as they could. Draco didn't want to be in the forest with Ginny any longer. 

The journey back was rather uneventful, except for when a centaur trod their path and told them " Mars is bright tonight."

When they approached Hagrid's cabin, Fang broke into a run and started scratching the door eagerly. Hagrid swung the door open and his face lit up when he saw Draco and Ginny carrying Wechter roots and all their limbs were intact. 

" 'S a dangerous place, th' Forest," Hagrid said, collecting the Wechter out of their arms with one enormous hand. " Yeh'll be back tomorrow t' get th' Ash."

Draco had been hoping that tonight's trip into the Forest would be his last, and was bitterly disappointed at the prospect of another night of going into the forest with Ginny for the second time. 

_I want my life back_, he thought bitterly on his way up to the castle, Ginny panting to catch up behind him.

* * * * *

A/N: This is an FYI – the first little creature that attacked Ginny was a Jarvey. Consult _Fantastic Beasts & Where to Find Them_ for details.

~* PLEASE REVIEW *~


	7. Chapter 7

Disclaimer: Characters and setting belong to J.K. Rowling. Dancing spoons and potatoes with personalities belong to me.

Chapter 7 

When Harry returned to the Slytherin common room that night, he found his invisibility cloak lying on the bed. It was, without a doubt, left there by Draco the other night. He suddenly thought of something that made him angry: _Draco Malfoy_ had put on _his father's cloak_. Harry treasured the cloak dearly; it was the only relic that linked Harry to his father. He tried to shake a horrible image of the pale Slytherin with his pointed face sneering with glee as he wrapped _Harry's_ cloak around himself…. Harry shuddered angrily at the thought and gently folded the cloak and put it under his pillow. 

* * * * *

Past midnight, Draco was finishing Harry's homework in the empty Gryffindor common room. He needed to consult _Advanced Transfiguration_, which was in Harry's trunk up in the dormitory, and went to fetch it. 

Quietly as not to wake the other 6th years, he rifled through the contents of Harry's trunk. Underneath a box of old quills, Draco found a handsome, leather-bound book he'd never seen before. Curiosity getting the best of him, he opened it.

On the first page was a photograph of two people waving. On one side stood a young woman with dark red hair in simple green robes. Holding her hand was somebody who looked like an older version of Harry.

Draco stared hard at the photograph for a few seconds, and then it hit him. These were Harry's parents. 

Instead of hastily putting it away as he knew he should have done, Draco took the photo album back to the common room, forgetting about _Advanced Transfiguration_. 

He sat at the table and once again opened the book. Harry's parents continued to wave merrily. He turned the page and there they were again, waving and looking happy. 

Suddenly aware of what he was doing, Draco slammed the album shut. The bang echoed throughout the empty common room. 

_What the hell am I doing?_ He thought. He pushed the book away from him as if it were poisonous. 

Draco sat unmoving in his chair for a moment. He always knew Harry's parents were dead. He knew the whole story, just like everybody else in the wizard world. Yet, when he saw the actual pictures of Lily and James Potter, he became strangely aware that they were _real_. Voldemort killed them and Harry had grown up without them, the loving and happy people in the photographs. Draco realized they were _really_ dead and Harry was _really_ an orphan.

This thought disturbed Draco more greatly than he realized. Disregarding his homework, he grabbed the album and headed back up to the dormitory. 

* * * * *

The following day passed devoid of unusual activity. Draco felt himself getting sick when he saw Ron and Hermione scribble loving little notes on each other's parchments. At the same time a few corridors away in Transfiguration, Harry was missing them as he watched a confused Crabbe prod a tissue with his wand (which he happened to be holding backwards). Both were quite depressed and more than willing to switch back in an instant. 

After dinner, both boys headed towards the dungeons, Harry to the common room and Draco to detention.

By an unfortunate coincidence, they almost ran into each other.

" Where are _you_ going?" Harry spat, though he could honestly care less.

" Detention," Draco muttered grumpily. It wasn't like the boys were _ever _on good terms with each other, but Draco's nighttime incident increased the tension between them massively. 

They shuffled their feet onward in the quiet corridor. " It's not like you didn't deserve it," said Harry. His gray eyes shot at Draco coldly.

" Get over it Potter. And speak for yourself. It's _your_ cloak. You probably use it for the same reasons too."

Something that had been bothering Harry for a while was released. " You're damn right, it's _my _cloak. Why were you using it?"

Draco looked away and pursed his lips together tightly. He didn't want to say how much he's wanted such a cloak since he was a child, how much he loved the feeling of it shrouded over his body, and the wonderful sense of freedom it gave him. 

Draco was 'saved' from Harry's penetrating stare when the door of Snape's office opened and out walked Professor Dumbledore. 

" Ah, Mr. Potter and Mr. Malfoy." He gave a warm yet faintly forced smile and his eyes twinkled like stars in the sky. 

Snape walked out as well, his expression contrasting that of the headmaster's greatly. He gave one look at the green- eyed boy in front of him and contorted his face into one somebody would have upon meeting a blast-ended-skrewt for the first time: intense dislike and disgust. 

" Mr. Potter, I believe you have detention with Professor Snape at this moment." Dumbledore nodded towards Draco. "I just spoke with Professor Snape, however, and you will not be going into the forest today. Kindly report to the Great Hall where Mr. Filch will be."

Draco mumbled something incoherent, shot an annoyed glance at Harry, then turned on his heels and walked away. 

" Mr. Malfoy, I would like to discuss something with you," said Dumbledore to Harry. He turned to Snape. " Would you be kind enough to allow us to borrow your office for a moment, Severus?"

Snape nodded importantly. His face had changed completely. He actually _smiled_ slightly at Harry and walked away.  

Harry entered Snape's creepy office. He studied, with disgust, the pickled ingredients that the nasty potions professor had placed around the room. 

" Please sit down, Harry. I have something important to say." Dumbledore looked grave. He had locked the door of the office and was now walking to Snape's desk, his hands locked together in front of him.

Harry sat and followed Dumbledore with his eyes. What was this about?

Dumbledore seemed to have read his mind. With a sigh, he said, " It's Voldemort, Harry. The Ministry has caught six death eaters in Romania just two hours ago. The Minister just owled me to tell me so himself."

Harry had grown inured to Dumbledore's grave messages. It was no surprised to either of them whenever bad news came up. Dumbledore even stopped beating around the bush after so many conversations and just went straight to the point as he did that day. 

" Just recently, the Ministry began using Verisaterum to a high extent. All the death eaters caught were questioned and they all said the same thing. I regret to inform you that Voldemort has become Animagi."

Harry's eyes practically bulged out of his head. He was, in no way, expecting _that_. " What animal can he turn into?"

Dumbledore just shook his head. " As to that, nobody has any idea. That is why we must take extra precautions. First of all, I cannot allow you to leave the castle without my permission. You will not be able to leave at all after dark."

Harry sat numb in his seat. He somehow had always associated Animagi with good people. Sure, Pettigrew and Rita Skeeter were animagus, but so were Sirius and _his dad_. The connection, though insignificant, bothered Harry. 

" Now, Harry. The circumstances at this moment change many things. Voldemort, most likely, doesn't know about the effects of the Devejuice Potion. That is why Mr. Malfoy is being closely monitored from now on as well. I did not want him in the Forbidden Forest, of all places." Dumbledore looked quite worn out, but the twinkle in his eye burned with a strong passion, a passion to overcome the obstacles Voldemort threw at him. " This isn't just for you or him though. No, I don't want _any_ students near the forest at this time."

Harry opened his mouth to say something but Dumbledore read his mind again. " The closest you will get to the forest is the Quidditch pitch."

And that was all. Both Harry and Dumbledore knew what would come, would come, and they would meet it when it did. 

* * * * *

Draco met Filch in the Great Hall, who was feeling particularly nasty because of his cold. He was wearing an old tartan scarf and wheezing like he had a hairball stuck in his throat. Speaking of hairballs, Mrs. Norris was wrapped in a fuzzy blanket and Filch was holding her like a baby. 

Filch thrust a sponge in Draco's hand and pointed to a door behind the head table. " There's a corridor in there with food paintings. Take a bucket down with you. You're gonna scrub each painting till it's _spotless_. And NO MAGIC!"

Filch marched away. The veins in his temple had twitched at the mention of Magic. He despised it dearly because he didn't have it. Draco picked up a bucket of water with one hand and gave Filch's retreating back a very rude gesture with the other. 

He reached the corridor and heard the sound of water being wrung from a sponge. 

" Hey Harry," Ginny said. She was scrubbing the frame of a large painting of a spoon and a knife waltzing. 

Draco groaned under his breath. _Not her,_ he thought. 

Wordlessly, Draco stepped in front of a painting of a potato. He stood with the old sponge in his left hand and suddenly realized he had no idea what to do. 

He glanced at Ginny. She had her sleeves rolled up and her hair pulled back. She doused her sponge in the bucket, and then squeezed the water out into it. 

Draco also rolled up his sleeves and wet his sponge. He honestly had no idea what to do. Draco had never touched a sponge in his life. In the Malfoy manor, there were over a dozen house-elves to do that for him. Ginny, being the only girl in her family helped Mrs. Weasley with chores often. 

This time, Ginny was scrubbing the ornate silver frame with her sponge in circular motions. Draco did the same. He scrubbed the frame and saw the dust wear off, revealing the bronze beneath. 

Watching Ginny occasionally to see if he was doing it right, Draco scrubbed the frame until it shone. Ginny had finished with her first painting already. The spoon and knife were sparkling, dancing happily together in their clean frame. 

Draco looked at his potato. It simply sat there as a normal potato did. Draco reached for it with his sponge, but it suddenly rolled over and out of the picture.

" What the _hell_? Where did it go?"

Ginny turned around from the fruit bowl painting she was now working on. She saw Draco facing the empty painting and laughed lightly. 

" You scared it."

" I _what_?"

Ginny, still smiling, approached the painting. " You scared it away."

" How do you scare a _potato_?" 

Ginny didn't answer him. She was peering into the depths of the painting as if it were a room. " Come out now, it's okay. Nobody's going to hurt you."

Draco raised his eyebrows at the girl who was trying to soothe a potato in a painting. 

" It's okay," she said, and sure enough, the terrified potato bounced back in, trembling from head to foot… as if it had any.

Draco watched in alarm as Ginny took her sponge and started gently running it across the potato. 

" Go ahead," she said, stepping back. " Scrub the potato."

Draco was still trying to get over just how peculiar the scene was. He reached up with his sponge and scrubbed the potato softly, as Ginny had. 

" I told you Harry," she said. " You scared him."

" _Him_?" remarked Draco. " How do you know it's a him?" He asked the question before he could stop himself.

Ginny just giggled nervously. " Because boys get scared easily."

Before a witty remark escaped his lips, he stopped himself. He turned around and continued scrubbing the potato, which seemed to be enjoying itself.

Ginny gasped suddenly. Draco turned to see the painting that she had been working on was opened on hinges, like a door. There seemed to be another room on the other side, for Ginny was peering into it. 

" Oh my… Harry, come here!" Draco heard her excited voice exclaim from behind the door. Ginny had stepped into the other room.

Draco approached the opening and stepped in, and his mouth opened in consternation.

They were in the school kitchens. 

The house elves seemed not to mind their unexpected visitors. A squat and slightly overweight one wearing a tea towel approached them and bowed so low, he was threatening to tip over and fall from his weight. 

" Is you needing anything, Mister and Miss?" he asked. His voice was high and croaky, like a toad's.

Ginny just stared at the elf in amazement. Draco, however, was used to the sight of elves. He ignored the servant and looked around. 

The kitchen was the biggest he had ever seen; million of pots and pans were stacked up on the high shelves that touched the ceiling. There were elves everywhere he looked, working diligently even though dinner was over. 

Leaving Ginny to a stammering lady elf, he walked deeper into the kitchens. He passed four long house tables, the replicas of the ones in the Great Hall. There was a huge brick fireplace a little beyond that, and Draco saw the oddest and most conspicuous elf of the lot. 

He was wearing a knobbly mustard- colored sock on one foot, and a violet wool one on the other. Over a t-shirt that read "West Ham Soccer", he wore a gold tie with horseshoes print. Atop his head was a worn out Chudley Cannons hat.

The elf looked up. Something about him was very familiar to Draco. His eyes filled up with tears and before Draco knew what was happening, the elf had crashed into his abdomen at full speed. 

" Harry Potter, sir!" a muffled cry sounded below him. 

Dobby looked up at Draco with adoration in his eyes. " You has come to visit me, sir! Harry Potter has come to visit Dobby! Dobby is most pleased!"

_Dobby_. Suddenly, Draco remembered. Dobby used to belong to _his_ family. Draco racked his memories. His father told him that in Draco's second year, Dobby was set free by… Harry Potter.

Draco looked down at Dobby, who had stopped hugging him. He had the biggest grin on his face. " Can Dobby gets anything for sir?"

" Er…" Draco could hardly utter a word. He reckoned the elf was free, for it was wearing real clothes. Then why was he so happy? How peculiar of an elf.

Ginny strolled over nibbling on a piece of chestnut pound cake. " Harry, you must try these! They're so good."

" Dobby is getting cake for Harry Potter!" Dobby ran away so fast, his hat fell off, revealing his brown, hairless head and large ears. 

In no time, Dobby was back with a whole plate of cake. Next to him stood another elf with a tray of tea and milk and sugar. 

" Harry Potter must sit and enjoy the cake with Lady Friend of Harry Potter!" Dobby, who was strong for a little elf, led Draco by the arm to an old-fashioned cottage chair near the fireplace. Ginny, who was not used to all the attention, enjoyed it and sat across from him. 

" Would you like to sit down with us?" Ginny asked Dobby. She seemed to have taken a great liking to him. 

Dobby was so taken back, he dropped the plate of cakes and tears fell down his front. " Lady Friend of Harry Potter is so kind, just like Harry Potter himself. Dobby has been asked by Lady Friend of Harry Potter to sit with them, as a equal!" Draco rolled his eyes, but nobody noticed. " Of course Lady Friend of Harry Potter is as righteous and noble as Harry Potter! That is why you is in love with Harry Potter and Harry Potter is in love with you!" 

Ginny's eyes widened and she blushed furiously. " Oh, we're not…."

" We're not in love," said Draco coldly. Another set of elves had left a new plate of cake on the table. " And we have to get back to detention."

Ginny looked genuinely sad. " But…." She glanced at the elves that were staring at her with very eager eyes. They looked as if they would break down in tears if she left. 

Draco read her thoughts. " Fine," he said, standing up. He wasn't exactly in the mood for cake in cookies. Dobby hugged him. " Farewell, Harry Potter, sir! You are brave and courageous and…."

Draco made a disgusted face a shook Dobby of his robes as if he were a piece of lint. " _Harry Potter_ isn't all that great."

Draco left the kitchens. He stepped out into the corridor, and the portrait shut behind him. He didn't want to be surrounded by all those elves, and especially not Dobby. 

Draco picked up a sponge and went to scrub the potato, but it jumped away as he reached for it. " Come _on_!" Draco exclaimed, throwing the sponge down. " Get back out here!" 

He shouted into the frame, then tried to soothe it as Ginny had done. " It's no use," he said aloud. 

" It doesn't trust the voice of men," another voice said. Draco whirled around. It was the spoon. 

" _What_? How can a _potato_ be so complicated?!"

The spoon shook its head (the round part). " Why don't you go fetch the girl?"

Draco crossed his arms. " 'Cause I don't want to."

" Yes, you do," said the spoon, twirling around in its frame. " You _want_ to go fetch her."

" No, I don't!" Draco exclaimed, throwing his arms in the air. He couldn't believe he was arguing with a spoon. 

" Tickle the pear and it'll turn into a doorknob." At that moment, the knife waltzed in a swept the spoon off its handle.

Draco scoffed – loudly. _Like I'm gonna listen to a bloody spoon._

He did. Only three seconds later, before he could stop himself, he tickled the pear.

When Draco entered the kitchens again, the elves bowed to him. He ignored them and headed towards where Ginny was sitting alone, sipping tea.

" The potato left again," said Draco.

Ginny looked up. " Why, hello," she said; she didn't seem to have heard him.

" The _potato_, Weasley. You have to call it back."

Ginny frowned at being addressed by her last name. " Why should I?"

Draco felt himself getting unnerved. " 'Cause we're in detention! We _have_ to!" he exclaimed. He didn't know why he was getting so worked up.

Ginny seemed to have been struck by a thought. " We _are _in detention."

Draco scoffed. He opened his mouth to speak, but Ginny interrupted. " Sit down, Harry, please? We'll eat some cake for a while and then we can go back." Her brown eyes lit up with innocence. " I promise."

Something about the way Ginny said 'I promise' compelled Draco to sit down across from her. Dobby returned with more tea.

" Harry Potter has come back!" he squeaked. Ginny leaned towards Dobby.

" Hey, how do you know Harry?"

Dobby beamed with pride. " Harry Potter is helping Dobby in time of need. Dobby used to live with --- with ---," He peered around nervously and made sure no other elves were near. " _Bad wizards_!"

Draco, who was sipping his tea, spit in out in his cup and glared at the elf. What if Dobby told Ginny about Lucius Malfoy's collection of Dark Arts items, or the fact that he was a death eater and had served the Dark Lord himself in their manor?

Ginny just gasped. " What happened?" she asked sincerely. 

" Well miss, the family was planning for the most terrible incident to occur in Hogwarts history! They wanted to open ----,"

Draco coughed, loudly. " Aren't you supposed to be a good little elf and _keep your master's secrets_?"

" Oh come off it, Harry. Let him finish. What were they going to open, Dobby?"

Draco felt himself sweat. What would he do if Dobby revealed that his father had been responsible? Lucius was in enough trouble as it was. According to his mother's letter, the Ministry was looking for him. _At least he's well hidden_, Draco thought, _in Romania_.

" DOBBY!"

Dobby spun around and a very thin house-elf wearing glasses and a tea-towel stood two feet away with her tiny fists on her hips. " You is supposed to be working!" She pushed her glasses up and pointed her feeble finger in the opposite direction.

Dobby glanced at Ginny and Draco and whispered. " That is Minnie. She is being the head elf. Dobby must get back to work." He slouched away, being scolded by Minnie's high, shrieking voice.

Ginny drained her teacup. " What a funny little guy," she remarked. 

" You're finished," Draco said. " We've got to return to detention." He couldn't risk Dobby spilling his family's secrets to Ginny.

" Now hold on a second…. I didn't finish my cake," she replied. 

Draco waited in his seat, the fire in the fireplace to his right turning his ear bright red.  

Not taking her eyes off Harry (Draco, of course), Ginny said. " So… what did you do to get detention?" She had asked the same question the previous night in the forest, but they were distracted when she was attacked by a jarvey a moment later. 

Draco felt a slight flush in his cheeks, recalling the reason why he was in detention to begin with.

Reading his thoughts, Ginny swallowed and said, " Come on, Harry. I'll tell you why _I'm_ here."

It suddenly occurred to Draco that Ginny was serving for trouble as well. What could innocent Ginny Weasley possibly have done to get detention? He pondered this for a while. 

" What did _you_ do?" he asked.

Ginny laughed and shook her head. " It's not the most innocent thing I ever did, I'll tell you that!" She grinned slyly at Harry (Draco). "I'm not telling until you tell me."

Draco began tearing the cake on his plate. He didn't really want to tell her, but he was curious as to why she was there just the same. Besides, what was the harm?

" I lit some beds on fire."

Ginny gasped. " Intentionally?"

Draco nodded. 

" Oh my goodness…. Who's?"

Draco wasn't sure he wanted to get into the details, but he realized that Ginny thought he was Harry, and Draco couldn't care less for Harry's humiliation. " The Slytherins'. I snuck into their dorm and lit their beds on fire."

Ginny's eyes became the size of donut holes. The side of her mouth twitched, and she suddenly burst out laughing. 

" Nice, Harry! Very impressive!" she exclaimed between laughs, clapping her hands. " The _Slytherins_! Well, they deserved it, the whole slimy lot of them."

Draco did not laugh with her. He wanted to snap back with an insult about Gryffindors, but stopped himself in time. 

" So what did you do?" Draco asked Ginny. He had to admit he was quite curious now.

Ginny simply shrugged, still smiling. " I was late to Snape's class."

She stuffed the rest of the cake in her mouth and Draco just gaped at her with his mouth open. " That isn't fair, now! That's all you did?"

Ginny shook her head. " I know it isn't fair. A week's detention because I was ten minutes late!"

" That's not what I --- ," 

But Ginny was giggling. " I knew what you meant." She smiled cunningly. " I tricked you into thinking I did something real bad. Truth is, I just wanted to know what _you _did."

" How very Slytherin of you," he remarked, putting a piece of cake in his mouth. Despite Ginny's disgusted expression, he had meant it as a compliment.  

* * * * *

A/N: not sure if anyone spotted this: it's very minor: The name Minnie is short for Minerva. The house-elf named Minnie was strict and bossy just like McGonagall. Alright, just a stupid little thing I threw into the story.

See that button down there? Press it.


	8. Chapter 8

A/N:  It's been _two months _since I updated this story! I had a bad case of writer's block… but all better now, I guess. To **Rellik**- thanks for being such a loyal reviewer! Update your fics… please! To **Draco Malfoy N Harry Potter** – I appreciate to little e-mail you sent me bout a month and a half ago. And of course, to **Mitie Mouse **– I wrote the second half of this chapter thanks to your reprimand! 

I apologize for my laziness! Here's chapter 8 – you know the disclaimer. Reference to Malaclaw found in Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them.

Chapter 8 

Draco awoke a bit late the following morning. He had been serving his "detention" with Ginny until well past midnight (they hadn't managed to do anything more to the paintings and instead stayed in the kitchen). 

Draco entered the Great Hall alone, just as the swarm of owls swooped in bearing the usual morning post.

" Good morning Harry. Where's Ron?" Hermione piped cheerfully as Draco seated himself beside her.

Draco shrugged and rolled his eyes when Hermione wasn't looking. To him, the presence of the mudblood alone was bad enough. He hated the fact that Ron seemed to always want to tag along wherever Harry went, and it occurred to Draco that he'd never seen Harry without him. _How pathetic_, he thought. _Potter has a little crony._

Something dropped onto Hermione's lap. It was The Daily Prophet. 

Just then, Ron seated himself across from them. " 'Morning you two." He grabbed a roll. " Anything new?" he asked Hermione, aggressively biting off a piece.

Hermione kept her eyes glued to the paper and said, " Six death eaters were caught in Romania."

There was a loud clatter when Draco dropped his fork on the floor. " _What?_"

Ron shot a quizzical glance at his friend.

" Does it say who?" asked Draco hurriedly. 

With her mouth open, Hermione brought her attention back to the article. Fear began to clench Draco's stomach. 

" Ah, here it is. '_The death eaters, who are currently residing in Azkaban awaiting their trial, are Richard Lestranges_, _Ernie Stebbins, Arthur Von Hoffmann, Samuel Ronts, William Rutherford, and_'----," Hermione licked her finger and tried to unstuck the pages. " Hold on, it's continued on page 6."

Sick cold dread came over Draco and he felt like a dementor was hugging him. He sat, frozen in his seat, waiting for that sixth name. Was his father one of the six?

Hermione reached page six and scanned the article with her eyes. They stopped at the top and suddenly became huge. " Oh…" she whispered. 

At that instant, Draco knew. He realized he had not been breathing the whole time and exhaled slowly. 

Ron leaned across the table to have a look. He gasped. " _Lucius Malfoy_!"

Draco felt his chest tighten. The faces around him blurred oddly. He needed to get out. 

" Harry? Are you alright?" Hermione asked as Draco stood up and walked out of the Great Hall. 

He started up the marble staircase, not really thinking about where he would go. 

Hermione and Ron appeared at the entrance of the Hall. 

" Harry!" Ron called. They were running towards him. 

Draco turned around and saw the two of them standing at the foot of the stairs. He was almost taken back by the expression on their faces. Never in his life had anybody looked at Draco that way; He almost felt their compassion and concern radiating from them. 

" I just feel a little sick," he felt himself say, and added, " I'm gonna go lie down." He ascended the staircase again.

Draco strolled the corridors, not knowing what to do. His father had finally been caught and this changed a great deal of things. For one thing, his family's name and reputation went down the drain. People at Hogwarts, students and teachers alike, will treat him with less respect. _What if I'm expelled from Hogwarts_? Draco wondered. 

" Good morning, Mr. Malfoy."

Draco, at first, didn't even look up. But then, he realized _he _was being addressed. 

Dumbledore was standing only three feet away. One hand rested on a gargoyle statue. He was facing Draco with deep concern written on his face. There was no amusement in his eyes.

" Please step into my office. I'd like a word with you."

Draco suddenly felt enraged. Dumbledore was going to expel him based on his father's stupid actions, he thought. He was going to have to leave Hogwarts because of his father. Fury ran through his blood and he felt like screaming at the old man. Instead, he said evenly, " No."

Dumbledore did not seem surprised at all. His expression did not change at all and he said, " Mr. Malfoy. I won't cause you any harm. This is regarding yours and Mr. Potter's safety."

Draco calmed down a bit. What was Dumbledore on about? Curious, he followed the headmaster up the winding staircase and into his circular office. Draco took no notice of beautiful Fawkes perched near the door, the glistening pensieve placed on Dumbledore's desk, or the old headmasters snoozing in their frames. His mind was too preoccupied with other matters. 

" Mr. Malfoy. I need to let you know that from now on, you will be kept under close supervision."

Draco felt the fury come back. "Why?" he spat. " 'fraid I'll Avada Kedavra someone in the corridors?" 

Dumbledore shot a rebuking look toward Draco over his spectacles. " Surely you are wanting security now that you are Harry Potter and Voldemort wants to kill you." 

Draco shut his mouth. So _that_ was what this was about. 

" I have already had a talk with Harry, and now I must tell you something." Dumbledore glanced around the room, as if somebody was nearby and he didn't want them to hear it. " The information I'm about to give you is strictly confidential. And given the _circumstances_…" Dumbledore suddenly pointed to The Daily Prophet that lay on his desk, " I must ask that you keep this information enclosed for your safety and for others'."

Draco's eyes did not leave the newspaper that lay on Dumbledore's desk. He was suddenly realizing the gravity of the situation. " What is it?" he asked seriously. 

" Voldemort has become animagi." 

Dumbledore let this utterly ridiculous statement sink into Draco's mind before continuing. When his face showed some sort of comprehension, the headmaster continued. 

" Obviously, this gives him a major advantage in coming after the one thing he has wanted for 16 years now."

Draco's green eyes widened in fear. " Harry," he sputtered. 

" That's right, Mr. Malfoy. And because it is more than likely Voldemort does not know about the effects of the Devejuice Potion ---,"

Draco interrupted the headmaster by getting to his feet and heading for the door. This kind of news was simply too much to handle for him.

" Mr. Malfoy, please wait. This is extremely important!"

Draco whirled around, his anger now unsuppressed. " Switch me back!" he shouted before he knew what he was saying.

Dumbledore let out the most inconspicuous sigh and gave Draco a look of deep concern. " Mr. Malfoy, you know perfectly well I can't just yet," he said, shaking his head.

" SWITCH ME BACK!" Draco was now shaking. He hadn't heard a word Dumbledore had said. All he could do was dart his eyes from the newspaper on the desk to the mirror that hung next to the door, showing the reflection of an angry teenage boy with black hair and a lightening bolt scar. Incensed, Draco yelled, " Get me out of this bloody body! Get me out!" He began to tear at his hair, as if that would do anything. 

Dumbledore looked so calm. He approached Draco and with surprising strength, brought down his hands. " Please be logical. I cannot have you like this right now. There is nothing I, or anybody, can do to switch you back at this moment. I am working on the potion as much as I can and it will be ready as soon as possible. For now, you will have to live Harry's life. I understand this is a situation both of you were forced into. The best we can do is deal with it."

The sage man's words seemed to help Draco. He swallowed hard and looked back at the mirror on the wall. This was Harry's life. This was what The Boy Who Lived had been going through. He felt this strong realization process and felt the way he did when he saw Harry's photo album the other night. 

" Alright, I'll cooperate," said Draco, turning back to the Headmaster. 

* * * * *

That afternoon, the Slytherins and Gryffindors assembled outside of Hagrid's cabin for Care of Magical Creatures. Harry was skeptic about facing Draco, but at least he could keep a good eye on him lest he do something to Ron or Hermione.

" So," started Hagrid, clapping his massive hands together jovially, " I've got a surprise for yeh!"

Harry's stomach knotted. Everybody in the class glanced at each other apprehensively. Hagrid's "surprises" often ended in burns, cuts, and severe trauma. (Neville Longbottom still cowered at the thought of Hagrid's "dranticore, half-dragon, half-manticore" from their 5th year). 

Hagrid reached into the crate and pulled out a disgustingly gray lobster-like creature with deep green spots. It looked miniscule within Hagrid's massive arms, but it was probably a whole foot long. 

" Malaclaw," Hagrid said, smiling. " Went to the coastline meself to catch this bugger. Does anybody know what a Malaclaw does?"

Hermione's hand barely twitched before Hagrid turned to her. "Yes, Hermione?"

Pink with embarrassment, Hermione cleared her throat. " Its proper name is Mackled Malaclaw. It gives those who eat it a high fever and green rash. If one is ever bitten by a Malaclaw, they become very unlucky for a short period of time."

Hagrid chuckled. " That's right, Hermione. I was unlucky enough ter be bitten in me youth. Lost all me bets fer a week, I did!" 

Most of the students were disgusted at the sight of the Malaclaw. Others seemed scared it would bite them too. Only Hagrid seemed to be having a good time. He was comfortably holding the creature as if it were a teddy bear. 

" I've got more fer yeh. Lemme just put this bugger down here and get them…" 

As sensible a man Hagrid was, he was dense enough set the Malaclaw on the ground and bend over the crate to get more. The Malaclaw, sensing its freedom, scuttled across the grass towards the students. Some screamed. 

" Don't yeh worry, it won't hurt yeh. C'mere little feller."

The creature did not listen. It scuttled away even faster and was heading straight towards Hermione. Harry watched as it drew nearer to her. Before he knew what he was doing, he wove through the students towards the Malaclaw, wand in hand. 

" _Stupefy_!" 

Two voices shouted and two beams of light sprung from different directions at the Malaclaw. It stopped dead in its tracks immediately. The light beams ricocheted off of each other and Harry felt one nearly miss his right arm. He yelped in pain as it skidded across, burning him.

Harry looked up to see where the other beam came from. He knew he didn't even have to. It was Ron, and he looked pissed. 

Almost everyone in the class was staring dubiously at Harry as Hagrid rushed over and scooped the stupefied creature into his arms. Draco stood behind Hermione. His head was drooped down but his green eyes pierced Harry's. He looked disturbed and angry. 

" Hagrid, may I go to the infirmary?" Hermione squeaked. " The spell almost hit my arm and I got burned."

" Me too," said Harry. 

" All righ', go." Hagrid looked distracted. He was busy nursing the Malaclaw back to health. 

Hermione started her way up the grounds and Harry followed. He didn't dare say a word until they were out of sight from the rest of the class. 

" Hermione," he started, not sure what to say. 

Hermione frowned and turned around. She had an odd expression on her face, one that was a mix between anger and confusion.

" Hermione, I'm not…"

Hermione looked more confused than ever now. She definitely didn't recognize the compassion in his tone. 

" I'm not Draco, Hermione. It's me, Harry."

Hermione's mouth twitched a little, but her face remained apathetic. Her eyes darted around before she fixed them back onto Harry. " _What_?"

" C'mon. Let me explain." Harry opened the massive door of the castle and let her go in first. They entered the cool and empty entrance hall. " Do you remember the Devejuice potion we took last Friday?" 

Hermione slowly nodded. She didn't take her eyes off of Harry as they slowly began ascending the marble staircase.

" Well, remember how we had to take the antidote one by one at the end of class?"

Comprehension began to replace the confusion on Hermione's face. " Are you saying…"

Harry held up his hand and silenced her. " Malfoy and I were the last ones on the list. It turned out there wasn't any antidote left by then."

Hermione blinked. " How do I know you aren't lying?" she asked slowly. 

Harry uncovered the burnt spot on his arm. " Only Ron and I would do that for you."

Hermione opened her mouth and stared at the burn. " _Harry_…" she gasped.

Harry nodded. Hermione chewed her lip and broke her gaze. " So, if you're Harry, then – then Draco is…." Hermione gasped again and turned to Harry. " Oh my goodness! That's _Draco_ out there!"

Harry nodded, his gray eyes wide. Hermione furrowed her brows. She looked so confused and worried, Harry felt bad for her. They walked in silence along the corridors, Hermione trying her hardest to process everything by talking nonstop.

" This can't be! This _just can't be_! Ron and I thought he was you the whole time! Oh, I thought something was wrong. He, I mean you, no, _he_ was acting so strangely since Friday. And you! You saved me from that Malaclaw, just like Ron…  and _he_ didn't do anything to help…"

Hermione rambled on, frazzled by the news, and Harry, not having talked to her since last Friday, was very happy to hear her. 

* * * * *   (A/N: that was the first part. Two months later, I wrote the part below…)

Draco was more likely to hand-feed a dragon than admit to himself he actually _enjoyed_ Ginny's company. 

So he didn't understand just why he didn't feel so apprehensive about detention, but was actually looking forward to it. 

He arrived at the Great Hall a bit early and was greeted by a very unpleasant Filch. Mrs. Norris mewed at his feet, her cold yellow eyes fixed on Draco as though she saw right through him. Filch seemed better in health, yet his skin was paler than ever. He looked livid. Draco figured that perhaps this was because he and Ginny had not done a very thorough job with their cleaning the other night. He anticipated the reprimand.

" Think you're done with your detention, are you?" he spat bitterly, " Well, you lot got a whole lot more coming. You'd better not think you're special because you've cleaned the whole corridor last night. You've got a whole lot more to do… yes, a _whole _lot more…"

In sheer bewilderment, Draco's eyebrows shot up. They _hadn't_ cleaned the whole corridor last night, so why was Filch saying they had?

The sound of worn out sneakers on the marble floor signaled Ginny's approach. She was right on time.

" You're late," Filch growled. " The both of you will be cleaning the bathroom today. The girl's one the second floor corridor."

" Not _Moaning Myrtle's_!" Ginny exclaimed, looking horrified. 

" That's the one. Off you get now." The caretaker's eyes widened and his mouth twisted in a fashion of sickening glee. " And don't you think playing around will go unpunished. I still got the chains in my office. Yes, yes I do…"

Ginny raised an eyebrow at Draco and took his arm, and to his content, pulled him away from Filch. 

Mrs. Norris followed them as they walked up the marble stairs and halfway down the corridor. Ginny stopped in front the bathroom door (still with a sign that read OUT OF ORDER), and glared angrily at the nosy cat, which stalked away almost immediately.

" C'mon Harry. Let's just get this over with. And watch out for Myrtle, she's very… disturbed."

Draco followed Ginny past the door and into the stale smelling bathroom. It was obvious that the place had not been used. It was dark and dreary, as the only light source was a very small window at the far end of the room. Two buckets sat on the grimy tile floor. 

" How does he expect us to clean this mess?" Draco demanded. A loud sorrowful moan interrupted his thoughts. Through the wooden door of the last stall, a ghost glided out to greet them.

She was short with stubby legs and wore very old-fashioned glasses. Her transparent face was splotched with silvery tears. "_You_!" she exclaimed, pointing her pudgy finger at Draco. " I was wondering when you'd visit me."

" You _know _him?" Ginny asked in disbelief, staring at the ghost. 

A complacent expression crossed Myrtle's face. " Of course I know him. He used to come visit me. And then there was that time in the prefect's bathroom…"

" Er, _what_?" Ginny was half smiling now. She faced Draco. " You _visit_ her?"

Draco opened his mouth, but Myrtle interrupted. Her tone was sorrowful again. " Oh, that's right. Poor Myrtle can't have any friends, and it's _impossible_ for any handsome boys to know me…" Silver tears glided down her chubby cheeks, staining her robes. Draco glared in utter disbelief. He thought Potter was stupid to associate with Hermione, Ron, and Hagrid alone. But yesterday, he had found out that a _house-elf_ knew him by name, and today, the distressed ghost who haunts the girl's bathroom claimed he visited her.

" No, I didn't mean…" started Ginny, trying her best to sound sympathetic. But Myrtles loud cries covered her voice. " I'm sorry!" she yelled, but the ghost had glided back into her stall. 

Ginny looked at Draco, who shrugged. They picked up their sponges, wrung them, and set to work. Ginny scrubbed the grime around the sink, and Draco ran his sponge across the cracked mirror. 

Ginny spoke up after a few seconds. " Well, really now, Harry. Tell me about your encounter with Myrtle. And what's all this about the prefect's bathroom?"

Draco genuinely wished he could say he had no idea, but was a bit apprehensive about doing so because the prospect of Myrtle bursting into tears because he 'forgot' was very likely. 

A voice in the last stall suddenly spoke up. There was a difference in her tone, though it was not a dramatic change. " It was two years ago, I think. You see, I sometimes go visit the prefect's bathroom… I mean, it's _much_ nicer up there." Draco doubted that was the reason she went there. At that moment, Myrtle glided to their side of the stall. Ginny was still scrubbing, but eyeing Myrtle through the mirror. 

" Yeah, and?" she asked.

The complacent expression returned to Myrtle's face, as she rarely received any sort of attention. " Well, _he _came in. I stayed hidden in the faucet, of course. I, er, didn't want to surprise and scare him. He looked quite preoccupied about something. He was holding an egg with him too."

" An egg?" asked Ginny dubiously. " An egg…" she repeated, looking away from Myrtle and thinking hard.

" Triwizard clue," muttered Draco, stringing two and two together. Two years ago, he remembered Potter carrying it after the first task and telling Ron what it was.

" Well, I saw him taking off his pajamas…" 

Ginny's eyes snapped back up at Myrtle's reflection with rapt attention, and then she realized she did so and turned scarlet. Draco felt _himself_ turn red at seeing this.

Myrtle paid no attention to the color of her audience's faces. She continued, " It was, well, _so_ unexpected when he did this and I didn't seem to have time to shut my eyes. But I remember he dove into the tub straight away so I didn't get to see his ---,"

" Myrtle," said Draco, a little too loudly. " Stop. Now." Ginny seemed to be turning a little too red, and Draco did not know what to think of this. 

" Well, now, you remember the rest. I came out to talk to you! Oh, the look on your face when you saw me…"

Draco couldn't imagine what _he'd_ do if someone like Moaning Myrtle had appeared while he was taking a bath. 

" Isn't that a bit rude, Myrtle?" said Ginny. She was still very pink.

A sly smile crept on her face. " I'd expect you to do the same… someone like _him_." She nodded her ghostly face towards Draco, and then glided away and back into her stall.

Draco didn't know whether to feel pity for Potter or be disgusted. He saw his reflection in the mirror, and once again saw the dark haired boy staring back at him. 

" Well, I certainly wouldn't take advantage of that kind of situation," said Ginny. She was concentrating awfully hard on the sponge in her hand. " Would you?"

Draco raised his eyebrows. That was an unexpected question. If he were a ghost and saw a beautiful girl in a bath, what would _he_ have done? Well, Draco was a 16-year-old boy, and certainly, he would have taken advantage.

" 'guess not…" said Draco nonchalantly. He suddenly realized he didn't know why he was lying. It wasn't like it would have been out of place to say yes, but something had made him tell Ginny what she wanted to hear. 

Ginny smiled and turned to Draco. " Of course not," she laughed. " You would never…"

_Harry Potter would never_, Draco thought bitterly. He resumed his scrubbing and snuck furtive glances at Ginny, who he thought looked awfully cute with soapsuds clinging to her curls.

* * * * *

Harry, meanwhile, was busy training his team. He found that the only time being Draco was tolerable was when he was up in the air, playing Quidditch. The final was a little more than a week away, and he was pressing the Slytherins to work hard. Crabbe and Goyle, by the end of the session, were exhausted. They nearly collapsed the second they hit the ground. 

The other Slytherins dragged themselves into the locker room, but Harry remained in the air. He didn't expect the rest of the team to stay any longer, but Harry just wasn't ready to hit the ground and resume Draco's life. 

Dusk had fallen upon the grounds in almost an instant, and stars were actually beginning to sprout throughout the sky. Harry floated nonchalantly over the stadium, staring at the outskirts of the Forbidden Forest. The Whomping Willow still swayed dangerously, and beneath it, Harry saw Crookshanks lurking through its whip-like branches. The cat's yellow eyes beamed in Harry direction for a moment, before they turned away.

At the sight of Crookshanks, Harry suddenly remembered that he had promised to meet Hermione later that evening. He was planning to tell her about what Dumbledore had told him the other day, for the idea that Voldemort was now animagi had been bothering Harry to no end and he was eager to get it off of his chest and tell someone. 

Harry lowered himself to the ground, grabbed the trunk with the Quidditch balls (that none of the other teammates had bothered to bring in for him), and made his way back to the castle. He was glad the day was just about over, for it meant he was another day closer to being himself again. That was a bright spot on Harry's bleak horizon.

A/N: well, that took long enough to write… only two months. And hmm … who cleaned the corridor for Draco and Ginny??


End file.
